



Crt"**- 



"^C/^ SUGAR tANE ^^. 





RESOURCES 
POSSIBILITIES 
AND 

ADVANTAGES 
OF TRE 

QUEEN o;^ 

SOUTHERN 

STATES 









r,.^ *•«t••"'5-■»•*'■ 









Qass 
Book 



A Hand-Book of Louisiana 



Giving General and Agricul- 
tural Features, together with 
Crops that can be Grown 

Description of each Parish, 
Climate, Health, Education, 
Industries, Railroads, Water- 
Courses, Forestry, Etc.i5*i.*j* 



Issued by the Louisiana State Board of Agriculture 
and Immigration. ■ . . . . . 

J. C. LEE. Commissioner. Baton Rouge, La. 



I 



PREFACE 

N PREPARING a book for the purpose of setting forth with accuracy and clearness the varied and 
immense resources of a State which is yet only in the infancy of its development. 1 have found 
it necessary to cull from reliable literature which has hitherto been published. I have freely used 
matter from our last hand-bOok. which itself was largely taken from the hand-book written by Dr. W. 
C. Stubbs, Director of the Louisiana State Experiment Stations. For new matter in this hand-book I 
am also indebted to Dr. W. G. Stubbs; Gol. Arsene Perrilliat. Board of State Engineers; Mr H. M. 
Mayo. Secretary New Orleans Progressive Union; Mr. G. D. Harris. Geologist of Louisiana Geological 
Survey; Mr. J. H. Whyte. Secretary of Sh^eveport Progressive League, and to the last Biennial Report 
of the Hon. John T. Michel. Secretary of State. 

I take this opportunity of thanking those enterprising citizens, who have so kindly responded to 
our requests for photographs. " ) : 

It is sincerely hoped that this general review of the State and its resources may so interest 
prospective homeseekers as to cause them to make their homes among us. We extend them a cordial 
invitation. We will welcome them with open-handed hospitality to this land of plenty, this land of 
sunshine and of flowers— beautiful Louisiana. 



J. G. LEE. Commissioner. 



3y Tn^er 



/ 




STATE CAPITOL AT* BATON ROUGE 




FALLS OF THE COMITE RIVER. 




LIVE OAK ON BAYOU TECMC 




II 



A 90l^NTnT HOME IN LOUISIANA 




SCENE ON MCHMENTAU RIVER. 




^'-^ 



BAYOU SCENE. 



j^^J-T -.-.^ |^,V>Ji 



i^-' 






U' ?c^ 




i^-: 



PALMETTOS IN A FOREST 



amp^pcS^srj 





LAND IN PaOCeSS OF RECLAMATION 
NOW A FLOURISHING COTTON FIELD 



ON A 0'VY?U 




IV 



FISHING IN COMITE RIVEH 



Louisiana's Invitation. 



THE HOSPITALITY of Louisiana is proverbial, and 
she now stands with open arms at her borders, to 
welcome the stranger. Nature is exceedingly 
bountiful within her gates; agriculturist, manu- 
facturer or artisan will find here, what all men should 
seek, "a festival of well requited labor," with a genial 
climate, an honest, sunny-tempered people, and all the 
advantages of Twentieth Century civilization. Those 
who have come to her in recent years stand ready to 
testify in her behalf. Her marvelous development of 
the past ten years is but the forerunner of a more mar- 
velous development in the future. She invites you to 
come and be a part of this development. The last United 
States Census Report shows that capital invested in 
farms, yielded, in Louisiana, an income of 27.3 per cent, 
annually on the investment, and this, gentle stranger, 
is 70 per cent, higher than the general average for the 
whole United States. Corn, cotton, sugar-cane, rice, 
fruits and berries, truck, forage crops, and almost every- 
thing grown under the sun, can be raised on her rich 
and responsive soil. Her advance as a manufacturing 



State has been by leaps and bounds. In 1S90 she was 
the sixth ranking manufacturing State in the South, 
and in 1900 she had jumped to second place. Large and 
valuable deposits of coal in the northwestern, and aii 
unlimited supply of fuel oil in the southwestern part of 
the State, are the additions to her mineral wealth, dis- 
covered during the past year. Situated in the heart of 
the raw material district, with the richest soil on earth, 
with cheap fuel, both oil and coal, with nearly four 
thousand miles of navigable streams and three thousand 
miles of railways, with the Isthmian" Canal now an 
assured fact, can you have one lingering doubt of her 
future greatness and Imperial splendor? If this material 
side appeals not to you, examine her aesthetic beauty. 
She has her throne builded beneath the sunniest sky 
that lights the globe, and her shores are laved by the 
waters of the great Gulf. She lives perfumed by the 
choicest flowers, when bleak winter's chill has enclasped 
her more northern sisters. Boreas,' when most furious, 
stops in his maddened career, to pet and woo her. She 
is rich in all and holds out a generous and charitable 
hand to the children of her poorer sisters. 



All Historical Sketch. 



LCJUISIAN'A was named in lionor of Louis XIV, 
King or France, by Robert Cavalier de la Salle, 
in 1682. The Louisiana of the seventeenth century 
extended from the Alleghauies to the Rocky Moun- 
tains, and from the Rio Grande and the Gulf to the dim 
regions which now constitute British America. It was 
first visited by Europeans in 1541. De Soto, the Spanish 
adventurer, with his followers, explored the coast west 
of Floriila to the Mississippi River and beyond, and he 
visited the country on both sides of the river, where 
now stands the City of New Orleans. Jn 1542 he was 
taken sick and died. In order to conceal his body from 
the Indians, his followers buried him in the Mississippi 
River, at the point where it is now met by the Red River. 

Father Marquette. 

In 167.3, Father Maripiette and his Canadians, start- 
ing from Canada, descended the great river from Illinois 
to the mouth of the Arkansas. The river was again 
descended by La Salle, in 1682, who took possession of 
the country in the name of I^ouis XIV, and for him 
named the land Louisiana. He explored the river to 
its mouth, and, returning to France, organized plans for 
establishing a colony. The shij) failed to reach the mouth 
of the Mississippi, and the colony landed in Texas. It 
is doubtful whether any colony was established in 
Louisiana before 1699, when Iberville, with a company, 
attempted a settlement at liiloxi. This was the chief 



town until 1702, when Bienville moved the headquarters 
to the west bank of the Mobile River. The soil of 
Biloxi is very sterile, and the settlers seem to have de- 
pended mainly on supplies from France or San Domingo. 

The Western Company. 

On the 26th of September, 1712, the entire commerce 
of Louisiana, with a considerable control in its govern- 
ment, was granted to Anthony Crozat, an eminent French 
merchant. The grant to Crozat, so magnificent on paper, 
proved to be but of little use to him, and of no benefit 
to the colony, and in 171S he surrendered the privilege. 
In the same year, on the 6th of September, the charter 
of the Western, or Mississippi, Company, was registered 
in the Parliament of Paris. The exclusive commerce of 
Louisiana was granted to it for 25 years, and a monopoly 
of the beaver trade of Canada, together with other extra- 
ordinai'v privileges, and it entered at once en its new 
domains. Bienville was appointed Governor of the colony 
for the second time. He had become satisfied that the 
chief city of the colony should be situated on the Mis- 
sissippi River, and, therefore, in 1718, New Orleans was 
founded. 

First Plan to Build Jetties. 

It was about this time that the engineer, Panger, 
reported a plan for removing the bar at the mouth of 
one of the passes by a system very much the same as 
that so successfully executed in recent years by Captain 



James B. Eads. It. was a mooted question, however, for 
some time, whetlier New Orleans, Manchac or Nateliez, 
sliould be the colonial capital; but Bienville had his own 
wav, and removed the seat of government to New Orleans 
in 1722. 

Under Spanish Kule. 

The Western Company possessed and controlled 
Louisiana some fourteen years, when, finding the prin- 
cipality of little value, it surrendered it in January, 1732. 
In 1763 occurred an event which left a deep impression 
on the history of Louisiana. On the 3d of November 
of that year, France, by a secret treaty, ceded to Spain 
all that portion of Louisiana which lay west of the Mis- 
sissippi, together with the city of New Orleans and the 
island on which it stands. The war between England 
and France was terminated by the treaty of Paris, in 
February, 1764. By the terms of this treaty the 
boundary between the French aijd English possessions 
in North America was fixed by a line drawn along the 
middle of the Mississippi from its source to the river 
rberville, and from there by a line in the middle of 
that stream, and Lakes Maurepas and Pontehartrain to 
the sea. The French inhabitants were astonished when 
they found themselves transferred to Spanish domina- 
tion. Some of them were so rash as to organize in 
resistance to the cession, and finally, in 1766, ordered 
away the Spanish Governor, Antonio di Viola. In 1769, 
Alexander O'Reilly, the commandant of a large Spanish 
force, arrived and reduced the province to actual posses- 
sions. The colony grew slowly from this time until the 
administration of Baron de Carondelet, but under his 
management, from 1792 to 1797, marked improvements 
were made. 



In 1794, the first newspaper was established, "The 
Moniteur. ' ' 



The Purchase of Louisiana. 

The beginning of Jefferson 's first term found the 
United States threatened by the dangers and complica- 
tions of an international struggle across the water. 
Napoleon was engaged with plans hostile to England. 
France had obtained from Spain a secret cession to 
what was known as the Louisiana territory. The British 
Government was covetous of American territory and was 
interested in limiting the expansion of the United States 
to the westward. The United States Government had 
become seriously concerned over the question of the com- 
mercial outlet to the Gulf. Spanish oflScials at New 
Orleans were imposing restrictions which materially 
hampered the commerce of the Valley and which were 
the occasion of bad feeling. 

Marbois was Napoleon's Minister of the Public 
Treasury. Napoleon needed money for his war budget. 
But of stronger influence with him was a policy which 
might cripple England. Under such conditions. Presi- 
dent .Jefferson opened, through Mr. Livingston, the 
American Minister to France, negotiations for the pur- 
chase of so much territory as would control the mouth of 
the Mississippi. The inspiration for this diplomacy was 
the increasing clamor of the people in the great Valley 
against the interference with American commerce on the 
river. To aid Mr. Livingston, Mr. Monroe, afterwards 
President, was sent as a special Ambassador. 

Napoleon met the negotiations with a counter propo- 
sition. According to Marbois, who became the historian 
of the transaction. Napoleon said, in a conversation on 



the 10th of April, 1803, speaking of the proposed cession, 
with special reference to the desire of the British: 
"They shall not have the Mississippi, which they covet." 

Twenty days later the treaty had been consummated, 
and the great territory of Louisiana ceded to the United 
States for $12,000,000, and the assumption of certain 
claims amounting to $3,750,000 more. 

It was in commenting upon the accomplishment of 
the purchase that Napoleon remarked: "This accession 
of territory strengthens forever the power of the United 
States. ' ' 

The secret treaty of St. Ildefonso, by which the ter- 
ritory passed to France from Spain, was made in 1800. 
It was known to the Government of the United States, 
but the actual transfer from Spanish to French authority 
had not taken place. The trouble from which American 
commerce suffered was with the Spanish officials at New 
Orleans. President Jefferson, however, knew that the 
solution of the difficulty must come through negotiations 
with France. 

It is an interesting fact that in 1802 there sailed 
out of the Mississippi 158 American vessels, of 21,383 
tonnage. This was the American commerce endangered. 
It was the arbitrary order issued on the 16th of October, 
1802, by the Intendant Morales, "suspending the right 
of deposit" at the port of New Orleans, which created 
the outburst of indignation along the Mississippi, which 
prompted President Jefferson to enter upon the negotia- 
tions for the purchase of the territory. 

According to Marbois, Napoleon realized in some 
degree the magnificent territory which he was trans- 
ferring to the United States. He realized, however, that 
it was impossible for him to hold territory without send- 
ing a fleet and a strong force. He understood, also, that 



this transfer of Louisiana Territory to the United States 
would be the strongest blow he could deal to England. 

Napoleon mot the offer of the United States to pur- 
chase the mouth of the river with this answer to his 
Minister, Marbois: 

"Irresolution and deliberation are no longer in 
season. I renounce Louisiana. It is not New Orleans 
only I will cede; it is the whole colony, without any 
reservation. I know the price of what I abandon. I 
renounce it with the greatest regret. To attempt to 
retain it would be folly." 

The treaty of the purchase was signed on April 30, 
1803. The transfer at New Orleans took place on De- 
cember 20, of the same year. 

In 1804, the Territory of Orleans was established by 
order of Congress. The rest of the immense purchase 
was at first erected into the district of Louisiana; then, 
in 1805, into the Territory of Louisiana, and in 1812, 
into the Territory of Missouri. At the time of the 
.American possession," in 1803, Laussat, the French 
colonial perfect, declared that justice was then admin- 
istered "worse than in Turkey." With the American 
domination came new ideas. In 1808 a civil code of 
law.-5 was, for the first time, adopted by Legislature in 
Tiouisiana. It was based, to a large extent, on a draft 
of the (Jode Napoleon. Bj' act of Congress, in November, 
1811, the inhabitants of the Territory were authorized 
to form a Constitution with a view to the establishment 
of a State Government. The debates in the National 
House of Kepresentatives on this bill were long and in- 
teresting. The bill having been passed, however, the 
"Constitution of 1812 was framed and adopted, and on 
April 30, 1812, Congress passed an act for the admission 
of liouisiana into the Union. Three months after this. 




TROUT 5TREA 






P03SUM FAT AND TATERS' 



THE £ND OF TWO CENTURIES. 



A SCENE FROM A COUNTRY RESIDENCE 




RESIDENCE OF GOV. N. C, BLANCHARD SHREVEPORT, LA 

VI 




HE SULPHUR MJNES 




LtaUlO SULPHUR 



VII 



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^W^e^i^?^^'^"^ 



COAL BARGES FROM PITTSBURG ON MISSISSIPPI 
VIII 



war was declared against England by the United States. 
The contest continued until the treaty of Ghent, Decem- 
ber 24, 1814. But before the news of peace could cross 
the ocean, a force of 12,000 English soldiers, under Sir 
Edward Pakeuham, landed in Louisiana, and made an 
attack on New Orleans, which was successfully resisted 
by General Jackson, with only 5,000 men, most of whom 
were militia from Tennessee and Kentucky. The progress 
of the State from this time and until the outbreak of 
the Civil War was very rapid. Louisiana had a large 
interest in slavery. On account of the extensive culti- 
vation of cotton, rice, and sugar-cane, and the consequent 
demand for labor, her slave population almost equaled 
her white. At the outbreak of the war, Louisiana 
promptly took a position in favor of secession. 

Her ordinance of secession from the Union was 
passed December 23, 1860, by a vote of 113 to 17. On 
March 21, 1861, the same convention adopted the Con- 
federate Constitution, without submitting it to the 
people, and, in order to conform it to their State Con- 
stitution, passed amendments for that purpose. From 
this time until the close of the war, the State Govern- 
ment w.as nominally in the hands of the Confederates, 
though for the last two years of civil strife, its territory, 
for the most part, was in the hands of the Federals. 
Some of the earliest, as well as the latest, scenes of the 
war were enacted in this State. In April, 1862, Farra- 
gut 's command entered the Mississippi River. He suc- 
ceeded in passing, and in silencing. Forts Jackson and 
St. Philip, which defended the approaches to New 
Orleans, and captured the city on the 25 of April, 1862. 
By July, 1863, all the Confederate strongholds on the 
Mississippi were reduced, the towns captured, and the 
river opened to navigation. In 1863, General Banks 



brought the Attakapas Country into subjection to the 
United States, and, ia 1864, other excursions into the 
region of the Rod River were made by him with but 
partial success. 

Constitutions of 1864 and 1868. 

In April, 1864, a new Constitution was drawn up 
preparatory to the act of re-admission of the State into 
the Union. This Constitution was ratified by the people 
in SeiJtember, 1864. Under this Constitution officers of 
the State were elected, but the general Government re- 
fused to recognize the Constitution. In December, 1867, 
another convention was called, and its Constitution was 
submitted to the people to be voted upon according to 
the provisions of that act. This Constitution was adopted 
March 6, 1868. Louisiana was again admitted to the 
Union on condition of her ratification of the fourteenth 
amendment. This was done on July 9, 1868, and on the 
13 of the same month the Government was transferred 
from the military to the civil powers. 

Population. 

The population of Louisiana, census of 1900, was 
1,381,625. This showed an increase of 23.5 per cent, in 
the last decade. It also showed that the white popula- 
tion had grown to exceed that of the black by 78,000. 

Banks. 

Louisiana has 166 banks, 35 national and 131 State. 
The are sound financial institutions, with ample funds 
to take care of the growing and gathering of her crops, 
the operating of her manufacturing industries and her 



conimorcial iiuliistrios. For the promotion of new enter- 
]irisos, outside capital is large)}' deponiled upon. 

Assessment. 

In 1904, tlie total assessincnt of tlu> State was 
*.3.'51,018,941. This was an inc-rease of nearly $100,000,000 
(luring the past decade. 

The People. 

"Of the typical poiJiilation of Louisiana, also, a 
special mystery seems to be made, but Louisianians have 
much reason to be prou.l of their historical descent. 
They have a history as authentic and as valuable as the 
annals of the I'uritans of Massachusetts, or that of 
Catholic Mar^'land. The rearing of the State's colonial 
structure by one nation, and its blending into colonial 
dependence upon another, contains no special mystery. 
They are hospitable, brave, and generous people, whether 
tracing their history lack to French Bienville or 
"Laussat; to Spanlsli O'Keilly or 8ali-edo, or to American 
Claiborne. 

"That is the native State autonomy, which, blended 
with Kuglish, Irish and Scotch emigration, and the di,'- 
scendants of the Cavalier and Huguenot settlers from 
Virginia, Kentucky, Georgia, Alabama, and the Carolinas, 
make up the population of Louisiana. A people exhibit- 
ing all those finer traits which betoken the cultivation 
of noble traditions and refined associations, evidenced 
in the generous hospitality, the chivalric spirit, the 
punctilious courtesy, the knightly hand, the Christian 
knee, the clean firesides, and the holy altars cherished 



in the hearts and homes of as proud and pure an 
aristocracy as tlie world has ever known." 

Area, Production, Climate and Population. 

Louisiana has nearly 45,000 square miles of territory, 
containing some £8,000,000 acres. Of this amount about 
ll{, 000,000 acres is of alluvial origin, and the rest good 
u|iland. With proper drainage and levee protection 
tluire is very little of the alluvial region that cannot 
be cultivated. Thousands of acres of so-called marsh 
and swamp arc being reclaimed and put into cultivation 
every year. Capital and brain have converted barren 
wastes into rich, ]iroductive fields. The uplands are 
almost all su.sceplible of cultivation. Of her 28,000,000 
acres, only about .5,000,000 are in cultivation. On these 
acres tliere were raised, in lOO."!, $11.3,645,495 worth of 
|iroduce, distributed as follows: 

Cotton and Cotton Seed $48,057,038 

Sugar and Molasses 28,689,925 

Corn 12,469,262 

Eice 9,655,537 

Hav and Forage Crops 1,353,118 

Live Stock 3,002,306 

Poultry, Fggs, Iloncv and Wool 2,820,861 

Dairy " Products. . . . ." 4,168,015 

Vegetables, Orchard I'roducts, and Berries 3,318,944 

Tobacco and Miscellaneous Crops 110,488 

These figures are taken from the last report of the 
Commissiouer of Agriculture, on the stapie crops, and toe 
other figures are from the last United States Census 
Report. The acreage production, about $22.70 per acre, 
is greater in Louisiana than any other agricultural State 
in the Union. 



Climate. 

Its proximity to the Gulf of Mexico secures a pre- 
valence of southern winds, cool and moisture-ladened, 
which mitigates the extremes of weather experienced 
by the States of the North. Though our summers are 
prolonged, the heat is never oppressive, the thermometer 
rarely reaching 95 degrees. In carefully kept records of 
the three Experiment Stations for eight years, 98 degrees 
has been the highest recorded temperature at New- 
Orleans, 99 degrees at Baton Rouge, and 100 degrees at 
Calhoun. These maxima amounts have been rarely 
reached, not oftener than one or two days in a summer. 

The winters are usually mild, with an average tem- 
perature of about 53 degrees in the southern, and about 
45 degrees in the northern part of the State. 

Above all other requirements for a good climate, the 
differences between summer heat and winter cold should 
not be too great. Louisiana stands, in this respect, almost 



at the head of the States. She is blessed with a 
uniform temperature. 

Ice appears here but very seldom, and the climate 
of the entire State, from October to May, is an ideal 
one, attractive alike to the invalid and tourist, and thou- 
sands of visitors from the North are yearly seeking this 
State in quest of health or enjoyment. The hotels of 
New Orleans furnish attractive homes for the opulent 
and fashionable, while men of moderate means can find 
cheap and excellent homes in the smaller hostelries and 
private boarding-houses of the city, in the towns and 
villages scattered over this State, and along the Gulf 
Coast of Mississippi. 

The comparative temperature of New Orleans, and 
of Jacksonville, and San Francisco, is seen below, for 
the winter months of November, December, January and 
February, as compiled from the Weather Bureau records, 
at New Orleans, La.: 



TEMPERATURE IN DEGREES FAHRENHEIT. 







NEWf 


OKLE.\NS 


, LA. 






JACKSONVILLE 


, FLA. 






SAN FKANCISCO, 


, CAL. 








4) ^ 




Ms 
o 


Si! 


a; 






n 

K 5 


O ^ 




2 


<- 


> o 




»1 

^ 
►J c 




November — 


. 61 


. 68 


54 


85 


30 


63 


72 


52 


86 


26 


56 


04 


So 


78 


41 


December 


.. 56 


64 


49 


81 


20 


57 


68 


47 


81 


19 


52 


J/ 


47 


72 


34 


January ....- 


.. 54 


62 


47 


82 


15 


55 


64 


44 


81 


15 


SO 


56 


44 


69 


29 


February 


.. 58 


65 


51 


82 


16 


60 


70 


50 


84 


14 


52 


58 


45 


76 


35 


Season . 


_. 57 


65 


SO 


85 


15 


59 


68 


48 


86 


14 


52 


59 


46 


78 


29 



Regarding the heat of summer in Ijouisiana, there 
prevails in many parts a totally erroneous opinion. It 
is believed that it must be warmer here than in other 
States because Louisiana is located farther South. Such 
reasoning is utterly false; living in close pro.ximity to 
the Mexican Gulf, and having during the months of 
March, April, May, June, Juh' and August, almost con- 
stantly south winds, we ahvavs have a cooling sea 
breeze. 

Another widespread error is the impression that a 
white man cannot work in this climate during the sum- 
mer, and that only the negro can stand the heat. As 
far as the heat is concerned, the truth has been stated 
above; in regard to labor, it should be said that there 
are certain people who can never work, because they 
do not want to — during the summer it is too hot, and 
during the winter too cold for them, and they are will- 
ing to believe that only the negro can stand the heat. 

Our German gardeners and farmers, as well as 
thousands of other nationalities, liave performed labor 
in garden and field for many years. They need no 
negroes, and feel so comfortalde that they prefer the 
summer to the winter. On extremely hot days they work 



in the field only during the morning and afternoon 
hours, "laying off" during the midday heat, as they 
do in other sections under similar conditions. 

Cases of sunstroke are reported from Northern and 
Western cities by the half hundred; they occur here but 
seldom. 

Rainfall. 

The average yearly rainfall at New Orleans is 
about 70 inches, decreasing in quantity as one goes north- 
ward, with 45 inches as an average in the extreme 
northern portion. The heaviest showers fall in summer 
during the growing season. Winter comes next in its 
quantity of rainfall, while our springs and autumns are 
our dry seasons, with only occasional showers. Such 
seasons arc conducive to the welfare of our staple crops, 
cotton, sugar-cane and rice; dry springs permitting a 
successful planting and cultivation of these crops, and 
dry autumns, so essential to the rapid and economical 
harvesting of them. Our regular rains are from the 
southwest, j-et in summer they sometimes come from the 
northwest, and when they do they are usually accom- 
panied by thunder and lightning. 



10 




SlE^iN-EOAT MAKING A LANDING 





ON LAKE M-^U^tPAS 



aCNO IN THE MISSISSIPPI RIVER 



JKi JMiM TSa ■tMV. 



^ ^f^^'S:^^'^ 






"^.-i 



LEVEE CAMP ON MISSISSIPPI RIVER 
X 




AtVIEW OF SUGAR EXPERIMENT STATION SHOWING ORANGE GROVE IN FOREGROUND 

XI 




LABORATORIES AND RESIDENCE OF DIRECTOR AT SUGAR EXPERIMENT STATION, AUDUBON PARK, NEW ORLEANS 

XII 



Geology of Louisiana. 



GEOLOGICALLY speaking, Louisiana is a young 
State. It hart no existence at the end of the 
Paleozoic Age. Only a few closisg chapters of 
the world's history are here recorded, and these 
have been written by water, which is now, as ever, the 
great factor in landmaking in this State. 

The following condensed table will give the geologi- 
cal ages and formations found in Louisiana, and the 
material and fossil of each: 

Formation Nara3s. Materials. Fossils. 

Quarteiiiary System: .... Living organism. 

Recent beds Soil. 

Alluvium Soil. 

Second bottom. . .Bluff. 

Port Hudson Bluif, loam, clay, sand. 

Lafayette Sand, gravel (drift). 

Tertiary System . . Extinct forms, mainly marine. 

Neocene Sand, clay, limestone. 

Oligocene. 

Grand Gulf f'lay, sandstone. 

Vicksburg Clay, marl. 

Eocene. 

Jackson Clay, sand. 

Claiborne Clay, sand, marl. 

Sabine Clay, sand. 

Midway Calcerous elay. 

Cretaceous System Extinct sea shells. 

Ripley Limestone and marly clay. 



Only three of the principal geological systems are 
here represented, and one of these by its uppermost 
series, with an occasion'^! outcrop. 

While all these groups are represented in Louisiana, 
very few of them occupy extensive surface development, 
and, therefore, take but little part in the formation of 
soils. 

Extent of These Formations. 

Beginning in the southern part of the State, one 
finds the coast marshes, consisting of the blue clay of 
recent date, upon which the mud and elay, brought by 
modern floods and tides, have been deposited. They are 
now in the process of formation, and are overflowed 
daily by the tides. Near the bayous and rivers the 
alluvium brought down by the floods have been piled 
upon this clay, elevating the adjacent surfaces above the 
level of the marshes and making arable land. By levee- 
ing against high waters, these lands have become the 
permanent abode of a prosperous population engaged in 
cultivating the soil. Throughout this territory (sea 
marshes) liveoak ridges are found, which were reserved 
until recently from sale or pre-emption. The timber 
from these ridges was formerly used by the Government 
in building its ships. In modern times iron ships have 
supplanted wooden ones, and accordingly these ridges 
are now subject to the same laws as apply to other public 
lands. Much of these coast marshes that are now 
covered with reeds and grasses are susceptible of reclama- 



11 



tion. Dikes similar to those constructed in Holland for 
the reclamation of the land from the Zuyder Zee could 
he built here and thousands of acres of extremely fertile 
lands could be placed under cultivation. This, to a 
limited extent, has already been accomplished in South- 
west Louisiana. Recent contracts, involving the modest 
sum of $.'i.5,000,000, have been made for further land 
roi'lamatinn in Holland. Similar sums spent here would 
rci'l.'iim mui'li larger and iKOrc fertile areas. 

Bluff Lands. 

Above this similar, but .somewhat older clay occur 
the oarcereous silts and brown loams, brought down by 
streams which antedate those which exist at the present 
time. After the deposition of this clay in a sluggish, 
shallow sea, running well up to Cairo, 111., a gradual 
elevation took place, and this bottom liecame the outlet 
for the great volume of water falling between the 
Appalachian and Eocky Mountains. This ancient, enor- 
mous river extended from the present bayou Macon on 
the west to Vicksburg on the oast. It had, like our 
present Mississippi, its high waters and overflows. The 
current was, however, not so great, and hence, its de- 
posits were of a silty or loaming character. These de- 
posits continued until both sides of this great stream 
were walled in by high bluffs ten to fifteen miles wide. 
I-'rom Vicksl)urg, Miss., to Baton Rouge, I,a., on the 
eastern biinks, these bluffs are cuntinuous. At the latter 
place they swerve to the left and are soon lost against 
the older formations. On the western side these bluffs 
have been partially destroyed, but enough remains to 
trace the exact position in former times. Upon the 
western banks of Bayou Macon may now be plainly dis- 
cerned the bluff formation constituting what are known 



as Ba\'ou Macon Hills. These bluflfs follow this stream 
through West Carroll, Richland, and Franklin. From 
Harrisonburg, in Catahoula parish, they may be traced 
by occasional outcrops through Rapides, Avoyelles, St. 
Landry, Lafayette, Iberia, and St. Mary parishes. The' 
five islands jutting out of the sea marshes are of this 
formation. The hills of Opelousas, Grand Coteau, 
Carencro and Cote Gelee, are remains of these bluffs. 
The western banks of this ancient stream have been 
almost destroyed by water. Between the Ouachita and 
Bayou Macon they have been spread out over nearly the 
entire country, forming some of the best lands of the 
State. .lefferson and Mer Rouge prairies of Morehouse, 
Holloway, of Rapides, and Marksville, of Avoj'elles, have 
all originated from disintegrated materials of this ancient 
ridge. But the largest results from this disintegration 
are to be found in the parishes of west Louisiana. They 
extend from Franklin, St. Mary parish, on the east, to 
the Texas line on the west, and from the coast marshes 
of the south to near the extreme northern limit of St. 
Landry parish. This entire prairie has been reclaimed 
from the salt marshes by the deposition of the material 
I'erived from the western bluffs of this ancient stream. 
The area of this bluff formation is, therefore, quite 
large in this State. 

Stratified Drift. 

North of the pine flats, and participating in the 
general southward di]) of the formations of the State, 
occur, at or near the surface, beds of sand or gravel of 
the stratified drift. This formation is found on the tops 
of the hills of the State as well as below the blue clay 
of the Mississippi River. It is the presence of these 
sands or gravels which cause so much trouble with caving 



12 



banks along this stream. The channel of the river has 
cut its way through the blue clay into these sands or 
gravels. At high water the velocity of this stream is 
considerably augmented, and, therefore, the increased 
erosive force of its waters wear away these underlying 
sands and gravels, and leave the superimposed clay 
stratum undermined, which, when the flood recedes, un- 
supported by the buoyancy of the water, yields to the 
force of gravity and falls into the river, giving, in 
many instances, disastrous caves. The gravel of this 
formation is found overlying the salt beds of Avery 
Island, and underlying the bluff strata. This is its most 
southern exposure. Rising as one proceeds northward, it 
b(^comes more or less abundant throughout all of the 
uplands of the State. 

Tertiary System. 

The formations of this system are well represented 
in Louisiana, though they are very generally concealed 
by more recent deposits. 

The Neocene beds are met only in the deep oil 
wells sunk in the southern parishes of the State to a 
depth of from 1,500 to 2,000 feet. The drill proves their 
presence between the depths referred to in many cases. 

The Oligoeeue beds are di\'isible into the fresh or 
brackish water Grand Gulf and Vicksburg marine marls. 
The former serve to give the principal topography to the 
central portion of the State. They consist of light and 
colored soft sandstone as exposed at Harrisonburg, Alex- 
andria, and along the Texas and Pacific Railroad, above 
the last mentioned town. Intercalated with these are 
gray and light green clays. The comparative hardness 
of the layers has produced a series of hills extending in 
a southwesterly direction from Sicily Island and Har- 
risonburg, through Hornbeek to the Sabine river. The 



Vicksburg beds are exposed only in Catahoula in the* 
vicinity of Rosefield. 

Beneath the Oligocene beds ^ust described occur the 
selenitic and lignitic clays and marls of the .Jackson 
stage. They occur on Sandy creek near the Sabine; on 
the Kansas City Railroad north of Hornbeek; at Mont- 
gomery on the Red river; throughout the calcareous 
prairie region to the east, and at Tullos; again in exten- 
sive bluffs on the Ouachita, north of Enterprise P. O. 
They are usually recognized by the large number of 
Zengloden cetoides bones they contain. This animal was, 
as the name suggests, whale-like in character and was 
most characteristic of the Jackson stage. Most of the 
"red-lands" of the State belong to the Claiborne stage. 
Along the Sabine, where the southern dip is considerable, 
this stage has but a very limited areal development, 
though it can be seen fairly well near Florien and in 
the red-lands of the Negreet. Above Provencal and 
Natchitoches it is better displayed, and from St. Maurice 
it deploys north and east and occupies the greatest por- 
tion of the State between the Red and Ouachita rivers 
north of the Jackson ' areas described above. Its dip 
is here very slight, southward or eastward. 

That portion of the State west of Red river and 
north of the Claiborne beds is mainly of the Sabine or 
Lignitic stage. About Many and Mansfield the sands 
and clays of this stage are well shown. They contain 
huge, gray calcareous concretions, and also at least three 
extensive beds of lignite. In general, the surface features 
produced by the erosion of these deposits can scarcely 
be distinguished from those of the Claiborne. 

The Midway stage is hardly exposed at the surface 
in Louisiana. A few fossils from Sabine and Winn 
parishes have been referred to this stage. 



13 



Cretaceous System. 

Rocks of this system peep out from under the over- 
&prc:nling Quaternary and Tertiary clays and sands in 
several places. The salt licks of North Louisiana, the 
Winnfield ' ' marble ' ' quarry, the St. Landry limestone 



deposits are of this system. So far as square miles are 
concerned, their outcroppings are insignificant, but their 
good quality of lime-making and building material, as 
well as their oil and salt-bearing properties in the ex- 
treme southern part of the State renders them of the 
highest economic value to the State. 



Rivers and AVater (bourses. 



No STATE in the Union has so much alluvial lands 
or so many miles of navigable waters. The widest 
part of the flood plain, as well as the delta of the 
Mississippi Kiver lies within its border. The allu- 
vial and marsh lands derivable from this river are over 
115,000 square miles. The bottoms of the Red, and its 
tributaries before it enters this valley, about 1,700, the 
marsh lands west of the delta about 4,000, other alluvial 
and swamp lands about 600 square miles, making in the 
aggregate a little over 19,000 square miles of alluvial 
land, or nearly one-half of the State. 

The Mississippi and the Kc<l are the chief drainage 
channels of the State, and almost all of the larger streams 
of these basins diverge from them, .<ind hence, are called 
bayous. Before the days of levees they formed so many 



channels, or outlets for the escape of water in floods. 
Such a network of connection has thus been formed that 
it is new difficult sometimes to trace the course of an 
individual stream. As a rule, some large bayou flows 
along the edge of the bottom plain. Bayou Macon is on 
the west of the Mississippi flood plain, Ouachita River 
on the e.\treme west of the central plain, Bayous Boeuf. 
Cocodrie and Teche, on the west of the flood plain of 
the Red River. In North Louisiana the rivers follow 
the trend of the subterranean rocks. In the east they 
flow southeasterly in the Ouachita, and southward into 
the Red. In the extreme south those west of the Missis- 
sippi flow southward into the Gulf; those east, southeast, 
into the lakes. 



14 




BURNSIDE SUGAR FACTORY 
XIII 






s 


:Si sa^'-"^ 


:=?:!^.•: 


^r ' »f 


4 



A RELIC OF THE PAST--AN OLD OPEN KETTLE SUGAR HOUSE 



l_ANy ATION 




XIV 



PRIFARINa LAND POR CANS 





LOUISIANA SUGAR PLANTERS HOME 



BATON ROUGE SUGAR TACTORY DIFFUSION PROCESS 



XV 




RESIDENCE OF JNO T MOORE OF TERREBONNE PARISH 

XVI 



Navigable Streams. 

The following is a list of the navig-able waters in the State: 



M 
STREAMS NA 

Amite River 

Atchafalaya River . . 

Barataria Bayou . . . 
*Bartholemew Bayou., 

Bisteneau Lake 

Black River 

Bodeau Lake 

Boeuf River 

Boeuf Bayou 

Calcasieu River 

Cane River 

*Cross Lake 

Courtableu Bayou . . . 

D'Arbonne Bayou , . . 

DeGlaise Bayou 

Delarg^e Bayou 

Dorchite Bayou 

Forks of Calcasieu. . . 

Grand Caillou Bayou 

Lafourche Baj-ou . . . 

Lacombe Bayou 

Little River 



ILES OF HEAD OF 

VIGATION NAVIGATION 

61 Port Vincent 

218 Red River 

78 Harvev's Canal 

40 Baxter, Ark. 

30 . . . Minden. 
164 Mouth of Ouachita 

10 Bellevue 

55 Rayville 

11 ... 
132 

60 Grand Ecore 

25 Jefferson, Texas 

36 Washington 

SO Farmerville 

29 Evergreen 

20 

6 Minden 

32 

13 

318 Donaldsonville 

15 Bavou Lacombe 

12 Trinity 



MILES OF HEAD OF 

NAVIGATION NAVIGATION 

. Bavou Castor 
.Floyd 
.Hope Villa 
.Lake Arthur 
.St. Paul, Minn. 
Springfield 



STREAMS 

Louis Bayou 15. 

Macon Bayou 138. 

Mancliac Bayou 18. 

Meruientau River 81. 

*Mississippi River 585. 

Natalbany River 12. 

*Ouachita River 217 Camden, Ark. 

*Pearl River 103 Carthage, Miss, 

Petite Anse Bayou 8 Salt Mine 



Shreveport, State 
Shoals, Texas 

.St. Martinsville 



*Red River 510 

Rouge Bayou 15 

Sabine Bayou 387 

Teche Bayou 91 

Tensas River 112 Lake Providence 

Tickfaw River ■. 16 

Terrebonne Bayou 27 

Tangipahoa River 15 

Tchefuncta Bayou 20 Old Landing 

Vermilion Bayou 49 Pin Hook Bridge 

Other streams 155 



Total 3,771 



^Portion of navigable stream lying in other States. 



15 



Miles of Navigation in Each State of Mississippi Valley. 

MILKS. 

r^oiiisiana 3,771 

Arkansas 2,100 

Mississippi 1,380 

Montana 1,310 

Dakota 1,280 

Illinois 1,270 West Virginia 500 

Tennessee 1,260 Penn,sylvania 380 

Kentucky 1,027 Kansas 240 

Indiana 1,230 Alabama 200 

Iowa 840 New York 70 

Indian Territory 830 





MILES. 

720 




660 


Ohio , 


560 


Texas 

Nebraska 


550 

440 



16 



Levees of the State. 



A LARGE portion of the State of Louisiana, amount- 
ing to 23,000 square miles, ■which is about one-half 
of the total area of the State, is of alluvial forma- 
tion. By alluvial formation is meant that terri- 
lorv which was deposited in geological ages by the Mis- 
sissippi Eiver. It was slowly formed by the mighty river 
dropping the sediment which it carries to the sea and 
this sediment thus deposited rising higher and higher 
and filling up the estuary which extended as far up as 
('airo, became in the course of ages the richest agricul- 
tural ground in the United States. It has been often 
said that territory thus formed was the "cream of the 
soil of the United States." 

This alluvial part of Louisiana through which the 
Mississippi, Bed and the Atchafalaya rivers flow in 
their onward course to the sea, is thickly settled and 
highly cultivated; but at the time of flood in these rivers 
the extreme high water which they carry to the sea 
would overflow this alluvial territory were it not for the 
artificial embankments, or levees, as they are called, 
which line the side of these streams. The earliest set- 
tlers in the State of Louisiana first occupied the highest 
spots in these valleys, spots which are rarely overflowed 
and only by extreme high waters. Even then, at times, 
they found it necessary to surround their properties by 
artificial embankments or levees, in order to protect 
tliemselves from overflows at times of extreme flood 
period. Little by little, as the country became more 
settled, additional alluvial territory was occupied by 



civilization, and these levees had to be extended along 
the banks of the streams. 

At first the levees were built by the riparian inhabi- 
tants themselves and at their own expense. In the 
course of time, however, the State appropiated money 
for the construction of levees, and later on, the alluvial 
territory was divided, by legislative enactments into 
levee dictricts, which taxed themselves varying amounts 
in order to maintain these levees. Finally, the United 
States Goverment, recognizing that the levee system 
was necessary to improve and maintain the navigabillity 
of the Mississippi Eiver, devoted a certain amount of 
money annually to the construction of levees. 

At present the levee line by which the State of 
Louisiana is protected from overilow is about 1,430 miles 
long. Of this, 815 miles is situated on the Mississippi 
River, 395 miles on the Red River and tributaries, 70 
miles on the Atchafalaya Eiver, and 150 miles on Bayou 
Lafourche. 

The State of Louisiana levies, for levee puposes, 
a one-mill tax on all assessed property within its 
boundaries, whether it be situated on alluvial land sub- 
ject to overflow, or hill lands above overflow. This yields 
approximately $315,000 a year. In addition, the alluvial 
territory has been subdivided into 15 levee districts, 
Avhich, by local taxation, raise a revenue of approximately 
$1,000,000 a year for levee building. This revenue is 
raised, first, by an ad valorem tax on the assessed value 
of the property, which is generally ten mills on the 



17 



dollar; second, by a land lax, which is generally 2'{. 
cents per acre; third, by a produce tax levied on cotton, 
sugar, sugar-cane, molasses, potatoes, onions, rice, and 
even oysters; fourth, by a tax on every railroad, varying 
from $20 to $100 per mile. In addition to this the vari- 
ous levee districts have the right to issue bonds, the 
proceeds of which arc devoted to levee building, and the 
total authorized issue of which amounts to $4,999,000. 
The United States Government, through the Mississippi 
River Commission, has been disbursing about $700,000 
per year for the last three or four years in levee building 
on the Mississippi River. 

These taxes, high as they may seem, are easily anil 
cheerfully met by the residents of the alluvial portion 
of the State of Louisiana. The planters find their levee 



tax is cheap insurance against the floods which formerly 
used to inundate their crops; and moreover, the pro- 
iluetiveness of the alluvial lands of the State of Louis- 
iana is so great, and the returns yielded by agricultural 
products raised on these fertile lands so far exceed in 
value those obtained from the less productive hill lauds, 
that this tax, or insurance, is considered cheap and easily 
met. 

The levee system, although not yet complete, either 
in extent, or in size, has substantially and practically 
)irotected the State of Louisiana from overflows since 
1S93, and the day is not far distant when its completion 
will insure full protection to the inhabitants of that 
most fertile section of the State. 



Agricultural Divisions of the State. 



THE STATE may be <livided agriculturally into five 
parts: First, alluvia! region; second, bluff soils; 
third, gciod uplands; fourth, long-leaf pine region; 
tiftli, cTutral prairie region. 
First, Alluvial Region. 

This region may be conveniently subdivided into 
three parts: First, alluvial of Mississippi Kiver and its 
outlying bayous; second, alluvial of Ked River and its 
outlying bayous; third, the marshes of the coast and 
lakes. 

As before remarked, this region occupies about 
19,000 square miles, and its vast possibilities in the near 
future for supporting millions of beings are simply incon- 
ceivable. The lands of this section are now leveed 
against the annual encroaching floods of the rivers which 
traverse them. Several millions of dollars arc annually 



spent in enlarging and strengthening these protecting 
earth walls. When these streams, as they will be in a 
few years, shall be safely controlled in their annual rises, 
aed the confidence of the people established in the 
ability of levees to thoroughly protect, then will a full 
appreciation of the intrinsic merits of these lands be 
realized, and high values bo established. 

Ur. Hilgard speaks of this region as "the most 
fertile agricultural lands of the State, equaled by few 
and surpassed by none in the world in productive 
capacity." 

Alluvial Region of the Mississippi River and Its Outly- 
ing Bayous. 
The parishes of this region north of the mouth of 

Red River are East Carroll, Madison, Tensas and Con- 



18 





:Xff^^^'^' 



MTERIOR OF RICE WAREHOUSE 



DEEP V>/El_L FOR RICE IRRIGATION. AT GUEYDAN 



XVTI 




PICKING COTTON 
XVIll 



.==^1 








STEAMBOAT LOADED WITH COTTON 



XIX 





TOBACCO BARN AT STATE EXPERIMENT STATION 



A FIELD OF TOBACCO AT STATE EXPERIMENT STATtON. BATON ROUGE 




XX 



FERMENTING TOBACCO AT STATE EXPERIMENT STATION 



oordia, entirely, -and parts of Morehouse, Ouacliita, Union, 
West Carroll, Eichland, Franklin, Caldwell, and Cata- 
houla. South of the mouth of Red Eiver the whole of 
the following parishe,s are included in this region: 
Pointe Coupee, West Baton Rouge, Iberville, Ascension, 
Assumption, St. James, St. John, St. Charles, Jefferson, 
Orleans, St. Bernard, Plaquemines, Lafourche and Ter- 
rebonne. Parts of Avoyelles, West Feliciana and East 
Baton Rouge are also alluvial. In treating of the soils 
of this region it would be best, perhaps, to adopt the 
local custom and call all of that portion north of the 
mouth of Red River north Louisiana, and all south of 
it south Louisiana. This should be done, also, from an 
agricultural standpoint, since the soils of the northern 
section are of a lighter, sandier character than those of 
the southern section. Cotton is the chief crop in the 
former, while sugar-cane dominates among crops in the 
latter. 

Alluvial Lands of Mississippi Eiver in North Louisiana. 

Crossing the State from the Mississippi River west- 
ward along the Arkansas line, one encounters alluvial 
bottoms separated by spurs of hill land running down 
from Arkansas, until the hills west of the Ouachita are 
encountered. Bayous Macon and Tiger are encountered 
after a journey over alluvial bottoms of eight miles 
from the river. Westward of these bayous begin the 
Bayou Macon Hills (bluff formation), which are here 
about eight miles wide. They extend in a widening belt 
to the southward eightyfive miles, terminating in Sicily 
Island. Thei-r widest extent occurs just north of Winns- 
horo, in Franklin parish, and is here nearly twenty-five 
miles. 

Descending from these hills, going westward along 
the Arkansas line, the valley of the Boeuf River is 



entered. This extremely fertile valley is here also about 
eight miles wide and extends southward, with about the 
same width until it merges into the valley of the 
Ouachita River, eighty miles distant. 

Westward of the Boeuf River "alluvials, " we en- 
counter a true ridge of the tertiary formation stretching 
out from Arkansas well down into Louisiana, and cut off 
at some remote day from the main hills by the Ouachita 
River and its tributaries. 

Tliis ridge has been intersected by Bayou Bartholo- 
mew (which empties into the Ouachita), leaving a narrow 
tongue between it and its confluent. This ridge varies 
in width from four to thirty-five miles, and is known 
locally as Bastrop Hills, the town of Bastrop, the parish- 
seat of Morehouse parish, being situated thereon. 

The Ouachita River forms the western boundary of 
the ilood plain of the Mississippi Valley, and borders 
the hill country (good uplands), of Union, Ouachita, 
Caldwell and Catahoula parishes. Along this river and 
its tributaries, Bayous d 'Arbonne, De Siard and Bar- 
tholomew, some of the finest cotton plantations of the 
State are situated. These alluvial lands are in many 
respects most desirable, since their easy culture, profuse 
fertility and absence of levees (the upper Ouachita being 
above the highest oveflow), all conspire to give pirofitable 
returns under good culture and management. The ter- 
tiary ridges mentioned above are similar to the good 
uplands described elsewhere. There are some "prairies" 
scattered through these ridges, with soils varying from 
pure sands to whitish clays. In Ashley County, Ark., 
similar prairies, with the latter soils, have, by drainage 
and tillage, been made highly profitable. 

Seymour's and Dubull's, in northern Morehouse, and 
Prairie du Bois, in southern Ouachita, are of sufficient 



19 



size to merit a distinct coloring on the agricultural map 
of tbe State. Prairies Mor Rouge and Jeflferson lie at 
the eastern foot of the ridge in Moorehouse parish. They 
are extremely fertile tracts of a few thousand acres each, 
and properly belong to the "bhitf formation." The name 
of the former, Mcr Rouge (Red Soa), is derived from 
the prevalence of a sumac (Rhus copalina), whose ber- 
ries in autumn are brilliantly red. This shrub, and a 
few hawthorns, are the only tree growth on these prairies. 

Descending the western banks of the Mississippi 
River from the Arkansas line to the Gulf, no uplands are 
foun<l, and the entire country adjacent is wholly alluvial. 
Levees constructed and maintained at public expense 
extend this entire distance, and protect the lands from 
overflow in high water. Examination will show that 
the highest lands of this alluvial region are immediately 
on the banks of the river. This is true of every stream 
that overflows its banks in high water. It is accompanied 
throughout its course by a ridge, the resultant of the 
debris deposited by it in each successive overflow. From 
this ridge the lands slope gently to a low-lying cypress 
swamp, which is usually the drainage basin between the 
two streams. 

The bank of the Mississippi River in Louisiana, 
opposite Vi(d<sl]urg, Miss., is eight feet above the banks 
of the Tensas, twenty above the Lafourche, and ten 
above Monroe, on the banks of the Ouachita. Before 
the days of levees, every overflow carried the waters 
to these lower levels and frequently filled the entire 
alluvial district, even up to the banks on both streams. 
These floods restricted settlement on these lands in the 
past, but now, with our system of levees perfected, it 
is expected that they will be rapidly occu|)ied. 

The soil next to the river is not only the highest in 
ek'vation. but is, as a rule, tlie liglitest, or sandiest — 



the amount of sand depending largely upon the size and 
velocity of the stream dt'positing it. Hence, on the 
Mississippi River, soils too sandy for profitable cultiva- 
tion are sometimes found. These sandy or loamy front 
lands can easily be distinguished from the stiff back 
lauds by the tree growth. In north Louisiana the tree 
growth of the front land is cottowood, which is sup- 
planted by the willow on similar lands in -south Louis- 
iana. As explained elsewhere, the front lands are formed 
of the deposits from the present river, while the back 
lands are the deposits from an ancient stream which 
antedated our iireseut river, and one which possessed 
little or no current. They closely resemble the clay 
soils now being formed in our swamps. They are univer- 
sally known in north Louisiana as "buckshot" lands, 
on account of the excellent quality which they possess 
of crumbling into small roundish fragments on drying — 
a. property which gives them the highest agricultural 
value, since they combine the high fertility of clay soils 
with the easy tilth of light, loamy ones. The dark buck- 
shot soils are esteenied, for permanent productiveness, 
the finest soils in the world. 

Analyses m;ide of similar soils from Mississippi by 
Dr. Hilgard, show them to contain the largest amount 
of plant food, and "justify the reputation of lieing the 
most productive and durable soil of the Mississippi 
bottoms." Unlike most other clay soils, they may be 
tilled at almost any time when the plow can be propelled 
through them, because, on drying, they crumble spon- 
taneously into a loose mass of better tilth th:yi many an 
elaborately tilled upland soil. It is of such a depth that 
the deepest tillage, even by the steam (dow, would not 
reach beyond the true soil material; and its high absorji- 
tive power secures crops against injury from drought. 
.\t the same time (owing, doubtless, to its being traviTseil 



20 



by innumerable fine cracks anil underlaid by gravel or 
sand), it drains quite readily. The front lands are also 
liiglily esteemed, and but for the proximity of the "buck- 
shot lands," with which they are compared, they would 
be held of the highest value. Drainage and proper 
tillage will alwavs evoke from these soils the highest 
yields. 

South of Red River. 

Here the scene changes. Both the crops and tlie 
landscape vary from these described. Sugar-cane now 
bcciimes the chief crop, while the cultivable soil adjacent 
to the banks decreases in width as we descend the river. 
.\bove the Eed River all of the so-called bayons become 
ultimately tributaries of the Mississippi. Below Red 
River there is a perfect net-work of bayous, leaving the 
river outlets to the Gulf for the enormous volumes of 
water pouring through the Mississippi in times of flood. 
Along these bayous lie extensive areas of arable land, 
cultivated in sugar-cane, corn, rice, etc. Here, as well 
as on the banks of the Mississippi, extensive and highly 
improved sugar plantations, witli palatial homes, large 
and splendidly equipped sugarhouses, and well arranged 
laborers' quarters, are everywhere to be found. Between 
the bayous and back from the main river occur extensive 
swamps of cypress and swamp cane, the latter less 
aliuntlant near the coast. The land cultivated on the 
river varies in breadth from one to three miles, while 
on the bayous it is from a few hundred j'ards to one 
or two miles. Back of the cultivated lands are the 
wooded swamps, into which the drainage of the planta- 
tion is sent. 

Sometimes detached ])ortions of high land, having 
no present reference to any of the existing streams, are 
found four to ten miles from the present water courses. 



They are usually covered with timber, and in clearing, 
the latter is burnt, hence, such clearings are usually 
known as "Brulees. '-' Again, small islands jut up out 
of the marsh and abound in swamp cane, which furnishes 
excellent grazing for stock in the winter. 

To these lands, cattle were formerly sent in large 
numbers, and hence, were called "Vacheries. " 

As we descend the Mississippi, the soils are less 
varied in character. As a rule they are less sandy, and 
true buckshot soUs are rare. The latter are probably 
too deep to take part in soil formation. Usually the 
soils of this region are divided into three classes — 
"sandy," "mixed," and "stiff." They vary only in 
the proportion of clay they contain — those with the least 
are called sandy, and those with the largest amount stift'. 
The mixed soils are intermediate in character. As a 
rule, the sandy soils are the most esteemed, being easier 
tilled and drained. Their relation to heat is such that 
they are the last to start vegetation in the spring and 
the last in the fall to be affected by frosts. The con- 
verse of this is true in regard to the stiff soils. Being 
dark in color, they absorb heat rajiidly in the spring, and 
thus force an early vegetation. In the fall, on account 
of rapid radiation of heat, they are the first to be hurt 
by the frost. They are diflSeult to .drain and cultivate, 
and hence, are not in high request. On the other hand, 
they usually give a sweeter cane, but a lower tonnage 
per acre than other soils. Mixed soils possess properties 
intermediate 1 etween those described, and are very valu- 
able. It is probable that for all purposes they are the 
most valuable of the three. It frequently happens that 
all three of these soils may occur in a small field. In 
fact, so frequent in the immediate past have been 
crevasses and overflows that the entire alluvial soil 



21 



of south Louisiana may he ascribeu to them. The original 
deposits made by the river when its banks were being 
formed, and before the days of the levees, are rarely 
within the reaeh of the plow. Hence, the diversifieation 
of soils within a small area. 

Numerous analyses of soils taken throughout south 
Louisiana have been made, covering every variety from 
the sandiest to the stiffest clay, and they all show them 
to be riclf in the essential elements of plant food, and, 
as a rule, require only physical amelioration (chiefly 
drainage and good culture), to produ'Ce excellent crops. 
Since all these lands slope away from the river to the 
swamps, they can, as a rule, be easily drained by open 
ditches. Tiles have also been used successfully and exten- 
sively. Their great cost have prevented their general 
use. 

The total area of the State is 45,440 square miles of 
land, with several thousand acres of fresh and salt water. 
The land is distributed as follows: 

Alluvial lands l.'i.SSS 

Rluff and bluff prairies .5,730 

Oak and hickory uplands 8,10.S 

Long-leaf pine hills 7,582 

Long-leaf pine flats 2,556 

Central ])rairip region 785 

Coast marshes 7,420 

Such are the geological and agricultural features of 
this State, A State of marvelous fertility of soil, with 
the largest length of water courses, with splendid rail- 



road connections, with superb climatic conditions. A 
State connected inland by the great Pather of Waters, 
with an immense tr-rritory stretching from the Appala- 
chian to the Rocky Mountains, and outward, throiigb its 
mouth, with every port of the globe. A distinguished 
son of another State has truly said: "The northern 
coast of the Gulf of Mexico is the natural center of 
trade for the Western Hemisphere. The configuration 
of tlie continent, the direction of the great rivers, the 
sweep of the ocean currents, and the prevailing winds, 
all point to the mouth of the Mississippi as the natural 
center. There is land enough adapted to the growth of 
sugar contiguous to New Orleans to supply the wants of 
the continent, and to furnish vast quantities for exporta- 
tion. It only needs the proper application of machinery 
and labor to effect this great result. New Orleans is to 
be the grandest emporium of trade for the continent. 
When ship communication is made across the isthmus, 
New Orleans must become the great center of trade for 
North America, and nothing can divert it but an imperial 
despotism holding huge investments of capital else- 
where. " 

This prophecy is being fulfilled, and the millions of 
acres of land adjoining this river, and tributary to this 
already great emporium, must, at an early day, become 
peopled with busy millions of souls striving in this 
balmy climate for the m.astery of the agricultural world. 
To prepare for this great contest the first question to 
ask is. What Louisiana's lands will grow? 



22 




h 



.«4iAJ«L^' 














ORCHARDS AND TRUCK FARMS AT HAMMOND 



^^^^>i^■ 


* 
,*^^ 










' ^t »- 


*^ 










J 



FIG ORCHARD AND HOME OF S L CART, JENNINGS, L -^ 










XXI 



BANANA PLANTS AT AUDUBON 



'V 






,1. .„.^*H 









«^ 



GRAPES IN NORTH LOUISIANA 



JAPANESE PERSIMMON TREE IN FRUIT 



XXII 




SHREDDJNG CORN AT STATE EXPERIMENT STATION, BATON ROUGE 

XXIII 








CORN SHOCKED IN THE FIELD 



A Rice FIELD AFTER HAqvEST 




CALHOUN FAIR, 1903 



XXIV 



What Louisiana's Lands Will Grow. 



The general impression prevails that the South can 
only grow cotton, sugar-cane, tobacco, and rice; that 
other crops cannot be grown successfully, and that hay- 
making and stock raising are impossibilities in this sunny 
laud. 

This erroneous impression has been produced by the 
persistency of our planters and farmers in growing the 
above crops, a persistency largely inherited and acquired, 
with our large plantations filled with ignorant, unskilled 
laborers, who have been disciplined since youth in plant- 
ing methods. But the climax has been reached. Planting 
on a large scale is no longer popular. Unreliable labor, 
low prices, soil exhaustion and high money rates have 
shorn this business of all its pleasures and most of its 
profits. Disintegration and division is now the order of 
the day, and the large plantation of yesterday will be 
to-morrow the abode of many happy and prosperous 
farmers. 

The question may be asked. What else can be grown 
in Louisiana? The reply is a sweeping one; nearly every- 
thing capable of growth in a temperate or sub-tropical 
country. Wheat has been, and can be, grown iu the 
northern part of the State. Oats sown in the early fall, 
and using the rust proof varieties for seed, will make 
as finely here as anywhere on earth. Over 100 bushels 
per acre have been grown on the alluvial and bluff lands 
of the State, while the hill lands of north Louisiana have 
frequently given over sixty bushels per acre. Spring 



oats are sometimes successful, but are not generally to 
be recommended. Eye and barley, if home-grown seed 
be used, will thrive all over the State, and are frequently 
sown for winter pastures. The stock are turned on 
during the winter, and at the beginning of spring they 
are removed and the grain permitted to mature, fre- 
quently with large results. Two succe.''sive crops of 
buckwheat have been grown iu this State on the same 
soil in one year. 

Corn can bo grown easily all over the State, and if 
the same attention and methods of cultivation were given 
it liere as in the corn-growing States of the West, the 
average yield per acre would be but little under that 
produced there. But corn is a side issue with thf cotton 
and cane planter, and is cultivated as little as posnible. 
Under this "touch-and-go" method, the yield of thi.s. 
State during the present year is but little below 
25,000,000 bushels. By proper rotation, fertilization and 
cultivation, this yield could easily be doubled. Ujiui; 
the alluvial lands of south Louisiana the sugar experi- 
ment station has for several years averaged over luil 
bushels per acre upon a field of eight or ten acres. Sixty 
to ninety bushels have been obtained at the State experi- 
ment .station at Baton Rouge upon the bluff lauds, and 
thirty to sixty bushels are the average yields upon thu 
rotation fields of the north Louisiana experiment station, 
situated at Calhoun, upon the yellow- saniiy loams of the 
oak and short-leaf pine hills. 



23 



One ciiution is needed in planting grains of all kinds 
liore, that is, for a general crop use home-grown, accli- 
mated seed, e. g., corn grown here is planted in early 
March, and harvested in August and September, while 
seed from the extreme iS'orth planted at the same time 
will probably mature in May, and that, too, with only 
a partial crop. Wheat and oats, per contra, planted in 
the fall from seed raised in the extreme North, will not 
ripen before .Tune or July, if at all (the rust frequently 
ilestroying it before ripening), while home-raised seed. 
sown at the same time, will be ready for harvest in 
May. If, therefore, we desire an early crop of corn, we 
obtain seed from the North, and if an early crop of oats, 
wheat, barley or rye be desired, we send South for the 
seed. The reasons are obvious, when we remember that 
each comes to us inheriting the habits of the country 
from which it came. In the North the summers are short, 
and the time of the growth of the corn is, therefore, 
limited. In the South, the winters are short, and, there- 
fore, the period of repose is materially shortened, and 
early maturity follows. This involves the whole question 
of acdinuition. In Louisiana, under good culture, the 
corn crop will always be from twenty to 100 bushels per 
acre. 

Gernuui and cat-tail millets, the sorghums, both sac- 
charine and non-saccharine, clovers, grasses and root 
crops, cow peas, teosite and other forage crops can be 
grown over the entire State in larger quantities per acre 
than elsewhere, since the tendency of our climate and the 
extreme fertility of our soils are to make "weed." 

V'egctaldos of all kinds can be, and are, grown m 
large quantities. Besides those grown in the North and 
West are many others, peculiar to the South, such as • 
okra, globe artichoke, lima beans, etc., beets, cabbage. 



lettuce, radishes, turnips. Mustard, cauliflower, English 
I>eas, etc., are grown through the winter in open ground; 
In fact, every home, however humble, has its garden, in 
which most of the vegetables are grown. Besides these 
home gardens there are thousands of acres devoted to 
truck growing and market gardening. From the latter 
(uir own cities and towns are supplied, while the former 
utilize many thousands of cars in transporting their 
]iri)ducts to the Western markets. 

Of fruits a great variety of superior excellence can 
be grown here. The apple is grown in the northern part 
of the State. The pear, particularly the Chinese type, 
all over the State. The peach will grow ever^-where, but 
it fruits best in the hill lands . The native and Japanese 
varieties of plums do well everywhere. The apricot, 
nectarine and cherry are not successful anjTvhere in this 
State. Grapes can be grown in everv parish, but succeed 
best in the ui>Iands. Blackberries, dewberries and mul- 
berries grow wild in every parish; so do the wild ])lums 
in the hill lands. Strawberries are perfectly at home 
everywhere, and in some sections arc largely grown for 
the markets. Kaspberrics, currants and gooseberries do 
not thrive so far South. 

Pecans grow and bear abundantly all over the State. 
Sonu^ of the larger varieties, especially the paper shell, 
comnumd fancy prices on the market. English walnuts 
are grown in some of the southern parishes^ 

Oranges, kumquats and pomelos are grown through- 
out south Louisiana, while lemons, guavas, bananas and 
pineapples are grown on the extreme Gulf Coast. The 
Uumquat and pomegranate are found in nearly every 
vard of south Louisiana. Figs are cultivated in every 
parish, while in south Louisiana they are largely grown 
for the canneries. 



24 



No jiientiDii is iiiadi' of onv staple crops — cotton, 
sufrar-cane and rice — since they are inseparalily con- 
nected in every man 's mind with Louisiana and New 
Orleans. 

Tliis l)are recital will show the wonderful capabili- 
ties of onr soil and climate from an agricultural stand- 
point. Turning to the forests, we find a wealth of 
Nature's products ready for the harvest, to he turned 
hy man's skill and ingenuity into the various forms ami 
sliapes suitable for man's varied wants. Timber and 
lumber trees, stave timber, bo.\ timber, hub timber, spoke 
timber, tray timber, hoop timber, ship timber, bucket 
timber, etc., crown our hills, decorate our valleys and 
fill our swamps. Shade trees of the densest foliage and 
of most beautiful shape everywhere abound. The ever- 
greens and deciduous trees grow side by side in every 
forest. The magnolia and the liveoak intertwine their 
boughs with the beech and the ash, while the holly and 
the dogwood bask in their shadows. Willows abound in 
our swamps, ready for conversion into charcoal or to be 
twisted into baskets. 



Louisiana does not appeal alone to tlie utilitarian. 
Her aesthetic products are perluips more wonderful than 
her useful ones. Flowers of brilliant tints and attractive 
forms fill her fields, her woods and her swamps. Her 
climate favors the growth of native flowers as well as 
the delicate and highly-prized exotics. Roses Viloom in 
great profusion throughout the winter in open air, while 
.iaponicas, hibiscus and poinsettias of beautiful shades 
and brilliant tints are found in many yards. Tea olives 
and magnolias (fuscata), and cape jasmines perfume the 
air with their delicious fragrance, while chrysanthemums, 
geraniums and plumbagos give lirilliancy to every 
garden. 

Palms of endless varieties furnish the center pieces 
of many private yards, and ornament our parks and 
]uiblic squares. 

Such, in lirief, are the products of our soil. For tlie 
guidance of those seeking a home in our midst the 
following details of crops from here are given: 



Sugar Cane. 



WAS first introduced in Louisiana by the Jesuit 
Fathers in 17.51; but it was not until 1794 or 1795 
that Eticnne DeBore made the first commercial 
crop of sugar therefrom. A large number of 
planters soon followed Mr. DeBore 's example and began 
the erection of sugar-houses all over the southern part 
of the State. With each succeeding year names were 



added to the list of sugar jdanters, ami all of tlieni 
rapidly accumulated wealth. The first cane cultivated 
was tiie Creole vai-iety, which in turn was followed by 
the Tahiti variety. Neither of these were very satis- 
factory, and an additional impulse was therefore given 
to the" industry in 1820 by the introduction of our striped 
and purple varieties by Mr. John J. Coiron. These varie- 



25 




-^ ^t-tnes '^wsp'^sM^ 



s T -, 



.'■^.te 




PAMPAS 0«A9S IN BLOOM 






~4( 



CUTTING HAY ON I 




A FIELD OF ALFALFA 




A GOOD HAY CROP 
XXVII 





XXVlll 



POUNDS 

Jeflferson 7,484,437 

Lafayette 19,S61,S9o 

Lafourclie 72,356,638 

Orleans 4,691,456 

Plaquemines 30,589,962 

I'ointe Coupee " 3,066,680 

Hapiiles 6,681,169 

St. Bernard 3,850,000 

St. Charles 20,900,020 

St. Martin 61,258,480 

St. John 34,147,557 

St. Landv 2,144,436 

St. James 13,144,887 

St. Mary 121,013,331 

Terrebonne ^ 59,833,028 

Vermillinn 4,365,721 

West Baton Eouge 32,271,899 

Other Parishes 2,259,997 

The above gives a total crop of 720,554,948 pound."! 
of sugar, and was accompanied by a crop of molasses of 
23,727,735 gallons. There are now in operation 225 sugar- 
houses using vacuum pans, which give an output of 95 
per cent, of the sugar of the State, with an average of 
160 pounds of sugar per ton of cane ground, and over 
3,000 pounds of sugar per acre. The rest of the crop 
is harvested by "Open Kettle" sugar-houses, with a 
yield of not far from 2,000 pounds of sugar per acre. 
The area devoted to sugar-cane in Louisiana is about 
.100,000 acres. This can be almost indefinitely increased. 
Even in those parishes where sugar-cane growing is the 
chief industry, there are still large areas which may be 
profitably devoted to the cultivation of this plant, and 
will be in the near future, when central factories become 



more numerous, or those already erected shall increase 
their capacities. 

Some of our parishes are growing cane only in very 

limited areas, while every acre in them can be profitably 
used in the cane culture. In the sugar parishes there are 
over fifteen thousand square miles, or about 10,000.000 
acres of land. There in cultivation at the present time 
about 1,000,000 acres, or one-tenth of the area, of which 
only about 300,000 are in cane, producing annually over 
300,000 tons of sugar, or about one-seventh of the total 
amount consumed iu the United States. If the entire 
area now in cultivation in these parishes could be 
devoted exclusively to cane, this section would produce 
one-half of the sugar consumed in our entire country. 
Furthermore, vast areas of these parishes are susceptible, 
with but little expense, of being brought under cultiva- 
tion, and many companies have recently been formed 
with the view of developing this area. If they succeed, 
which doubtless they will, in their efforts, the total area 
available for sugar-cane culture in these parishes would 
be amply sufficient to grow all the sugar demanded by 
the people of this entire country. It is nut, therefore, 
impossible for the southern portion of the State of Louis- 
iana to grow all the sugar consumed in the United States. 
There are other parishes adjoining the sugar belt proper 
which are beginning to grow cane. The parishes of 
Acadia, Calcasieu, East Baton Eouge and the two Fell- 
cianas, with an aggregate area of nearly 6,000 square 
miles, and with little or no unavailable lands in their 
borders, could easily devote the larger part of their lands 
to sugar, and- thus greatly increase the sugar output of 
the State. This will ultimately be done when the sta- 
bility of the sugar industry will command the capital to 
erect the necessary central factories. 



27 



Central Factories. 

The cost of a contral factory capable of working 
ilaily from 400 to 2,000 tons of cane, with all nioilern 
machinery snitablo for the manufacture of the liest 
sugars, will he from $100,000 to $400,000. The profits of 
such factories, if well located, will be sufficiently to 
justify capitalists in erecting them. At the same time, 
thousands of small farmers and planters stand ready to 
grow the cane whenever the factories arc assured. 

Formerly every cane culturist was also a nuuuifae- 
turcr. and U])on every plantation of sugar-cane was to 
be found a sugar-house of .sutBeient capacity to work 
up the crop grown. To-day the scene is changing, 
changing rapidly. Central factories exist (.some that 
do not cultivate cane at all, Vnit purchase every stalk 
crushed; others that grow only a part, large or small, 
of the amount consumed). The presence of central 
factories i)resupposes the existence of cane farmers in 
close proximity. Central factories are greatly increasing. 
The fierce contiict between low prices ami jjrofitable re- 
turns has forced out of existence many a small and 
incomplete sugar-house, and will ultimately drive out 
the remaining ones. Ponderous machines with extensive 
capacities must hereafter nuuiufacture the crystalline 
l>roiluct of the sugar-cane. Jt recpiires a large area of 
cane to su])ply the daily demands of a large central 
factory; 1,000 to 2,000 tons ])er day is now a moderate 
allowance for the largest. Under these new conditions 
the growing of sugar-cane for sale to these factories is 
ipiite extensively practiced. Small farmers with ten 
acres of sugar-cane can find as ready a m.arket for it as 
the large planter with one hundred times this crop. The 
crops of both are in demand. Crowing cane by the ton 
for sale to central factories is tpiite .-i profitable busini'ss, 



and many have emljarked therein, and there is no in- 
dustry in this State offering to the prospective settler 
a greater inducement than the growing of sugar-cane 
for sale in this manner. Sugar-cane is usually bought 
\ipon a basis of values for a certain grade of sugar, and 
hence, when the latter is ruling high, the former con- 
forms to it in ])rice. 

Lands in any quantity nuxy be purchased or rented 
well adapted to the growth of cane. The capital re- 
quired will depend largely upon the magnitude of the 
enterprise. One "s own labor, if intelligently directed, 
will accomplish a great deal towards the cultivation of 
twent\' to thirty acres of cane. Additional help will Ije 
required in planting and harvesting the crop. Good 
land will make from 20 to 40 tons of cane per acre, and 
at present the factories are paying from 80 cents to $1 
per ton for each cent per pound that prime yellow clari 
lied sugar brings in the market of New Orleans. 

There is a large field in Louisiana for the investment 
of capital in central factories, and for intelligent labor 
to grow the cane. 

Syrup Making in Louisiana. 

In addition to the regular sugar crop an enoruuius 
quantity of syrup is manufactured upon a small scale by 
the faruu'rs of Louisiana. Nearly every farmer, large 
or small, grows sugar-cane for manufacture into syrup, 
both for his own use and for sale. This industry has 
assumed enormous jiroportions throughout the South, 
and to-day it is estimated that over half a million bar- 
rels of syrup are annually produced outside of the sugar 
belt proper.. Patches of sugar-cane, varying in size 
from a. fraction of an acre to 10. l.'i, 20 acres, are not 
uriiMiiiimuii throiiglinut the Stale. Tliis cane is h.arvested 



28 



and manufactured on a small scale with an inexpensive 
niitfit, consisting of a horse-mill and evaporator, with 
lioxes and barrels used as juice tanks, sulphur machine, 
etc. With these little horse-mills, extracting not over 
fill to 60 per cent, of the juice of the cane, and with 
these evaporators, losing a large amount of the skim- 
Miiugs, a syrup is produced which sold at prices varying 
from 20 to 50 cents per gallon, insuring to the producer 
an excellent article for home use, and frequently giving 
an increased quantitj', which is sold in the local markets 
at good profits. This syrup industry is capable of both 
improvement and extension. The world is hunting for 
pure sugar-cane syrup, and with this increased demand 
is coming increased intelligence and efficiency in the 
inaanufacture of the synip, and our planters are ready 



to meet the demands of the market. This syrup is now 
sold in enormous quantities for adulteration with glucose 
by the manufacturing houses all over the country. This 
practice, however, is greatly to be condemned, since it 
destroys largely the value of pure syrup, and the large 
amount of adulterated goods now on the market branded 
as pure prevents the use and consumption of the pure 
article. Those honses which have established a reputa- 
tion for purity and excellence of their products are sell- 
ing them at highly remunerative prices, and yearly there 
is an increase in the number engaged in this business. 
Syrup making bids fair to be one of the most profitable 
industries that can engagf 
and planter of Louisiana. 



Rice. 



FORMERLY, all the rice grown in this State was 
cultivated on the banks of the Mississippi River 
and its outlying bayous, and watered by these 
stream. Pumps and syphons wei'e used to elevate 
tlie water over the levees. Upon these Alluvial lands 
growing rice was an expensive business, involving the 
(jutlay of a large sum of money, and the expenditure 
(if a great deal of labor. A few years since. Southwest 
Lcuiisiana began the cultivation of rice upon its own 
prairie in a most primitive way. Rain water was col- 
lected by levees and used when needed upon the fields 
id' growing rice. So successful were these primitive 



methods, that thousands were attracted to this section 
for the avowed purpose of embarking in rice culture. 
Rice grown only by the aid of rain water is styled 
"Providence rice," and and was found, in the long 
run, to be devoid of the large profits which were pos- 
sible under abundant irrigation. Hence, capital soon 
combined, and dug irrigation canals, connecting with 
some bayou or river, from which the water was lifted 
by large steam pumps, for the purpose of irrigating 
rice. So great has been the development along these 
lines, that in Acadia parish alone there are now over 
500 miles of canals and laterals. Millions of dollars 



29 



have been spent in irrigation, thousands of acres of 
waste land have beeomo rich and productive rice fields, 
and every running stream or bayou is called upon to 
deliver its full quota of water for irrigating rice fields. 
The panters willingly pay large water rents, for the 
water used upon their fields, and both the capitalists 
owning the canals, and the planter using the water, are 
satisfied with the profits upon their investments. Under 
such powerful stimulants, rice culture has grown in this 
section of the State by "leaps and bounds," and to-day 
Ijouisiana grows four-fifths of all the rice produced in 
the United States, her crop, annually, approximating 
two millions of sacks of the weight of one liundred and 
sixty-two pounds each. 

This remarkable development in the field has been 
paralleled in the factory — for almost every town or 
village in this rice section has one or more rice mills, 
which buy their rough rice directly from the planter 
and ship their finished products to the markets of the 
world. There is ample room for the expansion of this 
industry, which is growing yearly at a rapid rate. Grad- 
ually "Providence rice" has been superseded by the 
more certain irrigation rice — as the canals afford the 
necessary water. There are still abundant opportunities 
for the construction of more canals, and thousands of 
acres awaiting, but the revivifying touch of irrigation 
waters, to be transformed into productive rice fields. 
Thousands of Western farmers have transferred their 
wheat implements and machinery from the West to this 
section, and are now successfully using them in the 
growing of rice, whose cultivation is similar in many 
respects to that given wheat. 



The following is the usual method pursued; 

Lands are well broken with riding plows and pul- 
verized with large harrows, and the rice seeded with 
broad cast seeders or drills. After germination, the 
fields are flooded and the water kept on them until the 
rice is nearly ready for the harvest, when it is drawn 
off and fields permitted to drj-. When dry, the rice is 
quickly harvested with self-binding reapers. Steam 
threshers convert the rice into a marketable form (rough 
rice), which is sold to some of the numerous mills of 
the State where the finished rice of coii.merce is pre- 
pared with the accompanying by-products, "rice polish," 
"rice bran," and hulls. The last are used under the 
boilers to furnish steam, while the others are most valu- 
able for stock feed, equaling in nutrition the middlings 
and bran from the wheat. The straw is either left on 
the field or fed to the stock, additioned by cotton seed 
moal or rice bran or polish. 

So cheaply and successfully has rice been grown on 
the prairies, that they are now liut little more than 
continuous rice fields, while the planters on the alluvial 
l.inds have nearly all disappeared. 

riood lands produce from ten to twenty sacks of 
"rugh rice per acre, which sell at prices varying from 
.$2.50 to $5.00 per sack. At present extremely good prices 
are realized by the prudent rice planter, and there is 
room for many thousands more in this section, before 
the industry will be overdone. Kicc belongs to the 
cereal family of grasses, and any one familiar with 
wheat culture can easily grow rice. 



30 





-^,^^^5^ t_ 



IMc GliUH&c 



A FIELD OF SOMCHUM YIELDING THRCE CUTTINGS 
A TEAR 



rOi-J LIVil 0*K IN AUDuaON PAH^^, Ntvv OftLEANS- aVCR 
TWO HUNDRED YEARS OLD 



XXIX 




A TYPICAL ANTE-BELLUM HOME 
XXX 



s ^ 




* c 






r't5r^:'-'^^r^c4 





Cotton and, Cotton Factories. 



THE cotton industry in Louisiana is one of tre- 
mendous import and significance. Tlic powerful 
influence it exerts on trade, its absorption of 
capital, both as product and manufacture, places 
it high in the scale of commercial economics. There is 
no section of the world more fortunately situated for 
the production of cotton than Louisiana. In the past 
it lias been of such potent significance that it has been 
called "King." Its future depends , on the establish- 
ment of factories in the South. Cotton pioducing offers 
an inviting field for speculative investors, because the 
lands which grow it can be purchased cueaply; it can 
be produced at a nominal cost. The fir,!i. thing to be 
done is for the raisers of cotton to send less cotton to 
the East, and manufacture more of it at home. 

Of all the industries which Louisiiiua has which 
offer inducements, that of cotton manufacturing offers 
supreme attractions. The advantages of location of a 
cotton factory anywhere in the 8tate, on the scene of 
the production of raw material, is now a trite topic. 
Fifteen or twenty years ago New England contended 
that it was preposterous for the South to think of manu- 
facturing any grade of goods from cotton. In a few 
years the South has practically driven the East out 
of all lines of coarser manufacture, and now is demon- 
Litrating that this promise was not over-estimated. This 
subject is receiving a great deal of attention iu Louis- 
iana. It has been successfully tried in tiie Carohuas, 
and in Louisiana stock companies have already been 



organized for the erection of cotton factories. The in- 
ducements in this field are tremendous. There are many 
things which place Louisiana at the head of cotton pro- 
ducing States, and specially as a field for the erection 
of factories. First, the cheapness of fuel, oil and coal; 
second, the cost and quality of labor; third, the abun- 
dance of raw material; fourth, the facilities for trans- 
portation, both rail and water, and the opportunities for 
export trade, furnished by the great port of New 
Orleans. 

Free sites can be obtained in many of the smaller 
towns for the erection of factories; cheap brick and 
lumber are always plentiful for the erection of the 
factory; cheap labor is abundant, and is always obtain- 
able in Louisiana. Shreveport, Monroe and Clinton have 
cotton factories, and other cities and towns are moving 
actively. New Orleans has had a number of successful 
mills, all turning out a good grade of goods, which have 
never failed to find a quick and ready market, and pay 
good dividends. 

The hill lands of the State, producing the greatest 
diversity of crops, will yield one-half bale of cotton per 
acre, while the alluvial lands yield from one to one and 
a half bales. 

No lands can grow cotton cheaper than these. 

The cotton seed oil business has grown to be one 
of the most important industries of the State. Nearly 
every town has one or more mills, and there are now 
lifty-one of these mills located in the State. 



31 



Tobacco. 



TllK ciak Mild sliiirt-leaf luiii- liills ami t lu> IciiiijlfMf 
]iine country are eniiiii'iitly adapted tu the j;''"wtli 
(if the type of yolhnvleaf tobacco, wliieh is now 
iu such large deniiuid for jilus wrappers and 
smoking tolaeco. 

Kxperinients all over north Louisiana have demon- 
strated these facts. Experiments at Hammond, in 
eastern lAiuisiana, made umler the direction of the State 
Experiment Stations, have confirmed the opinion pre- 
viously entertained of the ada]italiility of these pine 
lands to its growth. 

In growing tobacco, care must be taken to grow the 
best. The jirocess of curing is an important factor. In 
the experiments iu this State the "New Ram," the 
invention of Captain W. H. Snow, of \orth Carolina, 
has been adopted. Curing is accomplished in these 
"barns" in about three days. On the lighter soils of 
the hills and long-leaf pine sections, and on the bluff 
lands of this State, a most excellent tyjie of cigar le-if 
has been profitably and successfully grown. Cigars in 
large quantities have been made wholly from tobacco 
grown on the Experiment Stations, and after trial, have 
been pronounced of a most excellent type by expert 
smokers." Mr. L. (.). Coiirsault, of Convent, St. .lames 
parish, makes several brands of excellent cigars from 
home-raised tobacco, and fimls for them a ready sale. 

Upon the alluvial lands of this State, especially in 



St. James parish, is grown the far-famed Perique 
tobacco, which is preferred by many to any tobacco 
grown. This tobacco owes its excellence to the peculiai' 
manner in which it is cured and prepared for the market, 
being practically cured in its ow'n juice. This crop, 
limited iu quantity, finds its way into all of the markets 
of the world at highly remunerative prices. It is one of 
the ingredients in the famous "mixtures" prepared by 
many manufacturers. Unfortunately in this, as well as 
in many other instances of manufacture, adulteration 
has largely superseded the pure goods, and to-day it js 
believed tliat nine-tenths of the so-called Perique mi.x- 
tures contain really not an ounce of pure Perique 
tobacco. Those wishing to obtain the pure article had 
better buy it from first hands in New Orleans than risk 
their purcliase through manufacturers in other parts of 
the country. 

In north Louisiana as much as 1,600 pounds per 
acre of Yellow-Leaf have been produced. In south 
Louisiana, with cigar types of tobacco, the yield has 
reached over 2,000 pounds. Two crops a year can be 
obtained from the same planting. This is accomplished 
by leaviug a sucker in the axil of the crown leaf in top- 
ping the jdaiit. When the leaves of the first crop arc 
gathered the (dd stalk is removed and the young sucker 
soon takes its place, and with a favorable season makes 
nearly as large and fine a crop as the first one. 



32 



Tobacco growing conld be made one of the chief 
industries of the State, and with it would come factories 
for its manufacture, and thus the State of Louisiana 
could supply the States west of it with smoking and 
chewing tobacco. In 1897 the North Louisiana Experi- 
ment Station sold its crop to Lorillard & Co., of New 
Jersey, for 45 cents per pound, and at this price gave a 
very profitable return. The State Experiment Station 
at Baton Rouge sold its entire crop of 1897 in bulk at 
15 cents per pound at the Station barn. 

The following are the opinions of the leading tobac- 
conists of this country upon the merits of our Yellow- 
Leaf: 

Carr & Richardson, manufacturers, of Richmond, 
Va., write: 

"We pronounce it as fine in qiiality and texture 
as the best average of the best section, and among the 
best and most skilled planters in North Carolina. In 
short, we think its quality could hardly be excelled. * * 
You have as clear color for ripeness and quality as we 
have ever seen. We have seen cutters and light press 
wrappers of a fractional better color than this, but the 
white yellow was at the expense of its chewing and 
smoking qualities. The samples you sent are what we 
pronounce the ideal cigarette stock, excepting the 
heavier bundles, which is a light press wrapper. * • * 
Our advice to you, if yoii continue to make tobacco, is 
to make the ver3'- best, like the sample sent, getting as 
much oif an acre as possible and then securing the 
second crop if possible." 

These gentlemen write further that it is their 
opinion that no other country could successfully com- 
pete with Louisiana in raising tobacco, owing to our 
long summer, which insures a ripe crop, which ia not 
always the case in Virginia and North Carolina. 



From P. Lorillard & Co., New Jersey, the following 
was received: 

' ' We beg to acknowledge receipt of your favor of 
the 14th ult., also type samples referred to therein, which 
we have carefully examined, and note with pleasure the 
success attained in the growing and curing of bright 
tobacco. As indicated by these types, the soil is evi- 
dently well adapted to the growth of bright tobacco, and 
with the proper knowledge of curing and handling the 
same, we believe the farmers of your State will find 
tobacco raising a profitable industry." 

Pemberton & Penn, of Henderson, N. C, write: 
"It cannot fail to bring a good price." 
G. W. Smith & Co., Manufacturers, Lynchburg, Va., 
write: 

"We were quite interested in examining your 
samples, and surprised to see such tobacco from Louis- 
iana. It is a valuable crop, and if exhibited in any 
market in Virginia and North Carolina, in proper condi- 
tion, would command prices that would probably be 
very satisfactory to you. ' ' 

Messrs. J. P. Taylor & Co., Danville, Va., write: 
' ' We are sure it will bring you a good price. ' ' 
Mr. E. .1. Parrish, of Durham, N. C, says: 
' ' Samples received. They show to be very good 
stalk and worth from fifteen to thirty cents per pound." 
The Addison Tinsley Tobacco Company, of Louis- 
iana, Mo., write: 

"We find on examination your samples to be a 
very good quality of wrappers. We cannot make an 
intelligent bid without knowing proportion of long and 
short wrappers, but, lumping the lot, we make you an 
offer of twenty dollars per 100 pounds, for the entire 
lot." 



33 



Fruit. 



ALTHOUGH subject to some disadvantages in the 
way of unseasonable cold spells, Louisiana never- 
theless produces a number of delicious fruits. The 
various soils of the State govern these to a great 
extent, but there arc some which grow in all sections. 
Among these we have the blackberries, dewberries, figs 
and pears. The berries grow luxuriantly in all sections, 
but there are cultivated varieties which are very desir- 
able, namely, the Austin and Manatee dewberries. Figs 
grow in great abundance all over Louisiana, and seldom 
ever fail to produce a full crop. The ordinary blue fig, 
known as the Celeste, easily leads in popularity. It is 
the hardiest, and is very sweet and prolific. Other de- 
siralile varieties are the Brunswick, White Ischio, Ange- 
liquc. Mission, Lemon and Keine Blanche. Besides fur- 
nishing a full amount of material for daily home use, 
and home preserving, an abundance is produced for a 
commercial canning product. The great need is for 
factories in Louisiana to take care of them. They are 
perishable, hence, refrigerator service is demanded for 
shipment, and then it is doubtful if much profit could 
ne realized, as decay .sets in as soon as the figs are 
exposed, and, besides this, few people out of the fig 
district appreciate the exquisite lusciousness of a ripe 
fig- 

The only pears grown with profit are the varieties 
of the Oriental or sand pears. Of these we have the 
Le Conte, Garber, Golden Russet, Smith and Kieffer. 
The prevalence of blight prevents the culture of any 
of the European pears, honc«, little is done with them, 



lint tlic san<l pears offer by far the greatest resistance 
to this troublesome disease, and, although often fatal 
to them, with proper care little damage will result. 
Many of the European plums do well, also many varie- 
ties of the Japanese sorts, but the European varieties, 
such as the Gages, are not able to stand the long moist 
warm season. Of the Japanese sorts the leading ones 
are the Burbank, Abundance, Satsuma, Kelsey and 
Charbot. 

Another Japanese fruit of great promise is the 
.Japanese persimmon. The fruits are large, showy, and- 
will stand transportation well. The few sent North 
sell for seventy-five cents and upwards per dozen. Some 
of the finest varieties are the Hyakume, Kuro Kume, 
Nero Zami, Hachij'a, Tsurn and Among. 

In the sandier portions of the State, that is, in 
the Eastern and Northern parts, very good peaches are 
grown. Among the peaches we find the Elberta, Rivers, 
Snecd, Chinese Cling, General Lee, General Taylor and 
the Peentoe. They })car abundantly, but are not as 
long lived as the trees further north. In the south- 
western part of the State, nearing the Texas line, very 
good grapes are grown, among them being the Concord, 
Champion, Niagara, Eaton, Moore's Early, Herbemont, 
and tlie Scuppernong. 

Among the apples we have the Red .Tune, Shannon, 
Black Twig, Horn, .Astrachan, Yates and Transcendent. 

Below New Orleans is found the orange section, 
which is a most profitable fruit in Louisiana, and is 
treated of fully in the article which followa. 



34 




POPLAR TIMBER FOR EXPORT 



^ 






I'- .'^^r- 






A LOGGING TRAM 




SECOND GROWTH PINE 



M ■ 




.-.^'■M 



CHARCOAL BURNING 




TURPENTINE ORCHARD IN ST. TAMMANY PARISH. LA 




»PANt«M MOSS 



XX XIV 







FISHING BOATS, BmYOU TECHE 



XXXV 




.--?>-* 



"i«s 



ief-' 



OYSTEfl CANNING rACTOFiY 



AN OYSTER SCHOONER 



X XXVI 



Orange Growing in Louisiana. 



Up TO 1880, sweet oranges were grown chiefly from 
seed planted in some corner of the yard, garden 
or lot, and when germinated, permitted to grow, 
unaided by cultivation, pruning or fertilization. 
In till- course of time the straggling, neglected trees 
bure fruit — delicious fruit — for home uses. Thus, a 
home knowledge was obtained of the character of Lou- 
isiana fruit, but so little found its way to the outside 
world that that the latter knew absolutely nothing of 
its merits. The neglected, enfeebled trees were fre- 
quently killed by cold or insects or by diseases. The 
rapidity with which Orange trees under such adverse 
conditions were destroyed, soon engendered a popular 
. sentiment that oranges could not be profitably grown 
in Louisiana. This opinion, however, has now almost 
entirely been dissipated. Profitable orange groves are 
found all along the gulf coast and on both banks of the 
Mississippi River, below the City of New Orleans, and 
these groves now receive careful cultivation, pruning 
and an annual destruction of insects. It is true that 
such winters as '99 destroy completely the ordinary 
sweet oranges, but such winters are like angels' visits, 
' ' few and far between. ' ' Besides, remedial efforts 
against such 'influences of cold have been successfully 
tested and are now almost universally practiced. Oranges 
are now usually propagated by budding. The different 
varieties of sweet oranges are propagated upon either 
the sour or sweet orange stock or the citrus trifoliata. 
The citrus trifoliata is a very hardy plant, standing the 
climate of even Philadelphia. It is dwarfish in its 



habits, and therefore, is to the orange what the quince 
is to the pear. By budding on this stock, small trees 
are obtained, which may be planted closer together in 
the orchard. Like the dwarf pears, they bear earlier 
than the standards. New varieties of oranges have been 
introduced from all over the world; some of these, 
notably the Japanese contributions, are very hardy. The 
Satsuma (known in Japan as Oonshiu) budded on tri- 
foliata will grow and bear fruit up to the City of New 
Orleans. It will stand the greatest cold of any citrus 
fruit. This combination is now largely used for growing 
in half-barrels, in northern conservatories. Frequently, 
trees of this combination will in three years bear over 
lOO oranges. With provision against these occasional 
freezes, it may be asserted that the successful culture 
of this fruit can be carried on in southern Louisiana, 
provided proper attention be paid to the following: 

First — Selection of the hardier varieties upon the 
hardiest stocks. 

Second — To cultivate carefully and keep the orchard 
clean of insects and diseases. 

Third — To fertilize properly when needed and to 
select early maturing varieties that can reach the market 
before the Florida and California crops are ready. 

Below the City of New Orleans there is a large 
area devoted to orange growing, affording a livelihood 
to a large number of inhabitants. Eecently, attempts 
have been made and which are now full of promise, to 
proiluce a cross between the hardy trifoliata and some 



35 



of our best Viirielies of sweet oranges and thus obtain 
a hybriit whii-h will withstand the occasional cold of 
our winters an<l at the same time give us a marketable 
fruit. Experiments by the Agricultural Department at 
Washington and the various State Experiment Stations, 



have demonstrated the possibility of obtaining this re- 
s' It, and it Is higlily probable that in the next few 
years, orange growing may be largely extended in a 
nortln^rn ilirection, by the use of the products of these 
scientific efl'orls. 



Truck Industry in Louisiana. 



FEW jjcople are aware of the extent of the truck 
industry in Louisiana, nor do they appreciate its 
importance. The leading varieties of all our 
garden vegetaliles are grown in all portions of 
the State, and while the home garden furnishes an abun- 
dant supply during all seasons of the year, under proper 
management a large number may lie grown for commer- 
cial purposes. 

The commercial truck sections are found in various 
portions of the State. Along the Illinois Central Rail- 
road, which leads from New Orleans, north through the 
sandy pine lands, a direct line to Chicago, the most 
extensive truck farms are to be seen. The vegetables 
grown are, radishes, beans, cucumbers, cantaloupes and 
tomatoes. One town alone, Eoseland, shipped 65,000 
bushels of radishes in the earlier part of 1903. Hundreds 
of carloads of these vegetables are sent to Chicago, 
Cleveland and St. Louis markets, during March, April 
and May. This section also furnishes enormous quanti- 
ties of early strawberries, as thousands of cases are 
harvested each year, and shipments sent by carload lots 
at nearly every small place in Tangipahoa parish on the 
Illinois Central line. The plants are set in August and 



September of each year, and, as a rule, are kept but 
one year. Abundance of pine straw is used for mulch, 
and, when a Spring frost threatens, this is also used to 
cover the blooms as well, oftentimes protecting them so 
that the first fruit will ripen, thus saving the most 
[jrofitable berries borne. The strawberries grown .are 
t.'loud, Michel 's Early, Miller, Bubach, Ganby, Seltzer, 
and Creole Beauty. The Japanese plums are also grown 
in this section quite extensively, the most desirable 
varieties being the Abundance and the Burbank. 

Another great truck section is found in the imme- 
diate vicinity of New Orleans, and along the Biver 
to>vards the Gulf of Mexico, on the New Orleans, Fort 
.Tackson and Grand Island Railroad. New Orleans is 
supplieil mainly from this source, and at the same time 
enormous amounts are sent North. The vegetables 
gninn for the latter purpose are, cabbages, onions, toma- 
toes, beans, peas, eggph.nts, and cantaloupes. Cucum- 
bers are also grown, both in hot beds, and in the open 
fields, oft-times bringing high returns when sent North, 
the winter prices ranging from thirty cents to $2.50 
per dozen. Jn the Northern part of the State, leading 



out from Alexandria, along the Iron Mountain Railroad, 
is fouml a section in which the truck industry is just 
gaining a foothold. So far, tomatoes, jiotatoes, water- 
melons and cantaloupes only have been grown; but the 
facilities for transportation ai'e so good, and the soil 
and drainage so well suited for successful effort, that a 
rapid development of trucking along this line is soon 
to be expected. 

From Vicksburg, west to Shreveport, along the 
Vicksburg, Shreveport and Pacific Railroad, is found 
another section where profitable truck growing has been 
increasing from year to year. Irish potatoes are grown 
mainly, and, when properly handled, bring in good re- 
turns, producing from. 100 to 300 bushels per acre. Fre- 
quently, the second crop is grown from which seed is 
saved for the spring crop, and which also bring good 
returns from the market. The spring crop is planted 
in January and February, and harvested in May and 
June. The seed for the second crop is prepared for 
planting by special treatment, consisting of gradually 
exposing the tubers to the light and moisture, which 
matures them and excites the eyes into active growth. 
As soon as this is accomplished they are ready for plant- 
ing, which is usually in August. Potatoes planted then 
will mature in November. 

Along the Mississippi Valley Railroad north of 
Baton Rouge, through East Feliciana parish, and in the 
southern and western parts of the State, along the 
Kansas City, Pittsburg arid Gulf Railroad, especially 
around Shreveport, are now being annually made exten- 
sive truck shipments. Other north and south lines of 
railway now building in the State open up vast terri- 
tory in the light lands of north Louisiana hitherto in- 
accessible. These lighter sandy lands, so cheap, will 



soon be the truck gardens of the State. The varieties 
of vegetables grown for the Northern trade are as 
follows: 

The Acme and Beauty tomatoes, Chartier radish. 
New Orleans Market eggplant. Peerless and Triumph 
Irish potatoes. New Orleans Market and Imperial White 
Pine cucumbers; New Orleans Market cantaloupe. Drum- 
head, Flat Dutch, Succession, All seasons, and Nonesuch 
cabbages; the Italian and Bermuda type of onions; First 
and Best, and Ala.ska peas; and the Early Mohawk and 
Valentine bean. Sweet potatoes are sometimes grown 
also for truck purposes; but the home demand almost 
always prevents shipment. It is estimated that the 
annual crop approximates four million bushels. The 
sweet potato is at home anywhere in Louisiana, yielding 
from 150 to 350 bushels per acre. It is an important 
hog and stock food. The varieties most popularly grown 
are Pumpkin, Red and Yellow, Nansemonds, Hayman, 
Providence, Vineless, Jersey, Bermuda, California and 
Southern Queen. A close study of their condition, and 
a compilation of shipping statistics obtained from all 
the railroads of the State, show that the entire weight 
of all kinds of truck sent out of the State for the year 
ending in June, 1S98, was very close to one hundred 
thousand tons. Although this seems like a very large 
amount, there is every reason to believe that the time 
will come soon when that amount will be doubled again 
and again. When the fertile lands so well adapted to 
truck growing are taken up, and new lines of railroad 
spread out to afford the transportation required. 

Canning factories, furnishing a local demand, have 
been established and are in operation at Alexandria, 
Haynesville, Lecompte, Cottonport, Cheneyville, Donald- 
sonville and Thibodaux. 



37 



Grasses, Clovers and Forage Crops. 



THROUGHOUT the entire South, two well-known 
grasses furnish pastures and hay of the best 
quality, and in practically large abundance. These 
are Bermuda (Cynodon dactyon), the finest pas- 
ture grass in the world, and crab grass (Pancum san- 
guinale), which springs up in every cultivated field in 
early spring, and if not disturbed will furnish a large 
cutting of excellent hay in summer. These grasses grow 
all over the South, and, in the past, have been con- 
sidered our worst enemies. 

In south and middle Louisiana, upon the alluvial 
plains, bluff and pine lands, occur many varieties of 
paspuluras, several of which are highly esteemed, both 
for hay and pasturage, viz: P. distichium and P. 
platycaule. These are known by the Creoles as Gazon, 
and by the Americans as Carpet grass. 

A fox-tail grass (Setaria glauca) also grows luxu- 
riantly all over south Louisiana, and furnishes a fairly 
good hay and pasturage. 

In north and middle Louisiana, and even upon the 
pine hills and flats of east Louisiana, Lespedcza striata 
(Japan clover), covers every available space of unoc- 
cupied ground, even in the forest, affording excellent 
grazing throughout the summer for stock. When cul- 
tivated, particularly upon the bluff lands of the State, 
it makes large crops of a very palatable hay. Many 
thousands of acres are now annually grown, and a num- 
ber of colts and calves are raised exclusively upon it. 



It is especially luxuriant upon the bluff lands, and is 
there worthy of cultivation. In the alluvial lands it 
has not been given extensive trials. 

The varieties of grasses cultivated successfully in 
the North should here be tried only on a small scale, 
since experiments so far conducted have proven them 
to be, in many cases, unprofitable. The first essential 
for successful growth of grasses and clovers is to sow 
them in the early fall, upon well prepared seed beds. 
They spring up at once and get sufficiently rooted by 
spring to resist the encroachments of the native grasses, 
and withstand our long summers, the chief obstacles to 
successful grass culture all over the South. The best 
cultivated grasses are the following: 

Tall meadow oat grass (Arrhenathirum avenaceum), 
planted in early fall upon good, well-pulverized soil, 
will secure a good start by spring and make one or two 
cuttings of hay during the summer. It will last for 
.several years, and affords an excellent pasturage. It 
has succeeded on the alluvial, bluff and oak uplands. 
One bushel (fourteen pounds) of seed required for an 
acre. 

Italian rye grass (Lolium Italicum) sown early in 
the fall upon rich, moist land (not wet), will afford two 
large cuttings of excellent hay. The first cutting must 
be made before it flowers, since this grass is an annual, 
and after seeding, dies; forty-five pounds of seed re- 
quired for an acre. Succeeds everywhere on good, moist 
soil. 



38 




A ROUND-UP OF HEREFORDS, OWNED BY R. E THOMPSON, EAST FELICIANA PARISH 

XXXVI 1 





A TOUNG POLLED ANGUS BUUl- 



• »4-^ 



m 



1 • 1%^ - ^r ■* f^M-. n 




POLLFO ANCUS CAT (LE 



MOTHER ANO HER OFPSP^ING. RAISED IN NORTH LOUPStAN 



XXXVIII 





"'-^Wi 








A CARLOAD OF POLLED ANGUS CATTLE FATTENED BY STATE EXPERIMENT STATiON, BATON ROUGE, !AND WHICH 

TOPPED THE CHICAGO MARKET ON JANUARY 8 1904 

XL 



Rescue grass (Bromiis Shraderi) sown in the lirst 
cool days of the fall, upon well-prepared, fertile soils, 
will give excellent results. Cut before it goes to so"d, 
it will give two crops of hay. The last cut (after the 
seed are matured) will drop enough seed to re-seed the 
ground next fall. A good annual for this climate, and, 
if properly managed, will make a perpetual winter grass. 

The following have been partial successes: Red 
top (Agrostis vulgaris), on damp, low soils; orchard 
(Dactylis glomerata), on good soil; English blue grass 
(Festuca pratensis), especially in shady, damp places; 
velvet grass (Holcus lanatus), Kentucky blue grass (Poa 
pratensis), on good soils containing lime, and crested 
dogtail (Cynosanrus crystatus). 

The following new and imported grasses have been 
very successful, but the seed are difficult to obtain: 

Hairy oat (Avena sterilis), growth like common oat 
(A vena sativa), and is an annual; Japanese rye (Agro- 
pyrum Japonicum), a perennial of great merit, growing 
through the fall, winter and spring, and eaten greedily 
by stock. 

Bromus pinnatus, a course, rank grass, growing 
mainly in winter; Phalaris coerulescens, a summei' grass 
of great merit, and Panicura palmeri, a summer grass of 
wonderful growth and strong reproductive power, with 
large, wide blades and full seed heads. 

Bromus Inermis has succeeded upon dry, rich soils. 
Texas blue grass, propagated best from roots, is strongly 
recommended for high lands as a winter pasture. 

It must be remembered that no cultivated grasses 
will succeed upon poor, badly prepared soils; th'^refore, 
in going into grass culture, prepare lands thoroughly 
by growing first crops of clovers, cowpeas, vetches or 



alfalfa, which prepare the soil for all kinds of gram- 
naeae. Of the clovers: White clover grows in great 
luxuriance, naturally, all over the bluff and alluvial 
lands of south Louisiana. It furnishes an abundant 
pasturage in winter and early spring. 

Red clover can be grown anywhere in the State, 
provided the soil be first enriched anci sown in early 
fall. It is, however, not so certain a crop as crimson 
clover, which, when sown in the fall upon fairly good 
soil, will nearly always give a remunerative return of 
hay. It is an annual, and the seed must be carefully 
harvested each year for reseeding, since those dropped 
by the plant germinate at once and are killed by the 
he;it of the summer. This clover is particularly to be 
recommended upon the light lands of the State, as the 
elo\er best adapted to them, but it would be better 
even here to grow and turn under a good crop of cow- 
peas before seeding the land in it. 

Alfalfa (Medicago sativa) is wonderfully adapted 
to the alluvial lands of Louisiana. It can also be grown 
upon the best uplands. It should always be sown in 
September or October, at the rate of fifteen pounds per 
acre, upon well drained, deeply plowed, and thoroughly 
pulverized soil. If a good stand be obtained, it will 
afford the first cutting early in March, followed by six 
or seven more cuttings during the year. In fact, six 
to eight cuttings may be realized each year for several 
years. It produces a most excellent hay, rich in albu- 
minoids (14 per cent.), and relished by all kinds of 
stock. It is now finding a ready market in New Orleans 
at $18.00 per ton. Several thousand acres have been 
planted in this crop in the last year or two in this State, 
and the acreage is annually increasing. It is easily 



39 



cured. It is the only forage crop known that will afford 
a cutting of green matter every day in the year. It 
grows continually in winter and summer. 

Lathyrus — Of the three varieties, sativus, sylvestris 
and hirsutus, which have been tested, only the last is 
to bo recommended. It springs up in the late fall, grows 
through the winter, fruits in the spring and dies. From 
the seed dropped, it springs up again the next year. 

Vetches — Vicia villosa, sown in the fall, have given 
fairly good results. The other species have not proven 
successful. 

Soja beans (Glycine hispida) have done well upon 
the light hill lands of north and east Louisiana. Else- 
where in the State they have produced good vines, but 
little fruit. 

California, or burr clover (Medicago maculata), 
grows well all over the State, but it makes an inferior 
hay, not generally relished by stock. 

Beggar lice, or ticks (Desmodium molle and Tor- 
tuosum), grows luxuriantly most anywhere in the State, 
and when cut young gives a hay which is greatly relished 
by stock. 

Velvet bean (Mucuna utilis), is a most wonderful 
success all over the South. Planted in five-foot rows, 
and seed dropped in hills two feet apart, it will give 
the largest amount of vines of any plant known. It 
affords an enormous amount of food for stock, which is 
highly relished, or when turned under, a vast quantity 
of vegetable matter for the production of humus in the 
soil is furnished. It is an excellent soil restorer, the 
tubercles on its roots being larger than any found on 
any other plant. The pods, enclosing large speckled 
beans, grow in racemes on the end of stems scattered 



throughout the mass of vines. It is a valuable addition 
to our leguminous plants, and will be found very useful 
in reclaiming wornout soils. 

Spanish Peanuts — This plant is now grown largely 
for forage. The vines, with their adherent pods, are 
cured into hays and fed to all kinds of stock. They 
also are great soil improvers. 

German and Golden Wonder Millet have been grown 
successfully all over the State. For hay purposes it 
should be cut before it forms seed. 

Cowpeas (vigna sinensis) is the "boss" crop of 
the Southern States. It can be used as a soil restorer, 
a hay crop, and a grain crop. There are many varie- 
ties — some bunch and some runners. When the berries 
are desired for food the former is best used; when hay 
or soil improvement is desired the latter subserves our 
purposes. The clay, red, black and unknown are run- 
ning varieties. The last is perhaps the best pea known, 
making a large quantity of vines, and, late in the season, 
a full crop of berries. 

There is not a well-drained acre in the State that 
cannot, by the application of mineral manures, in con- 
junction with the growing of cowpeas, be made very 
rich. All rational farming involves a system of rota- 
tion of crops, and any rotation of crops in the South 
that omits the cowpea is an egregious blunder. 

Soiling and Forage Crops. 

The sacchnriiif sorghums are perhaps to be preferred 
to all others. Pl;uited in early spring, two or more crops 
can l)e cut during the year. All stock relish them and 
at least six to ten tons of dry fodder may be had at 



40 



a cutting. Next to these come teosinte (Eeana luxu- 
riaus), which on rich lajid gives an immense crop. Of 
the non-saccharine sorghums the yellow milo maize is 
probably to be preferred, if forage is desired, followed 
by white milo maize, large African millet, Kaffir corn. 



Jerusalem corn, Egyptian corn and wheat. If seed be 
desired, the large African millet and Kaffir corn will 
give the best results. 

Pearl millet (Penicellaria specala), is used largely 
for soiling in the spring and fall. 



Fibre Crops. 



RAMIE (Boehmeria Nivea) which furnishes a fibre 
nearly equal in value to silk, can be easily grown 
all over the State, and nothing is needed to make 
it a leading crop in Louisiana but a successful 
machine to decorticate it. 

The recent trials of machines for decorticating this 
plant, at the sugar experiment station, Audubon Park, 
New Orleans, gave promise of an early solution of this 
vexatious problem. When the farmer can obtain a 
machine to work up the product of his soil, he will not 



be slow in cultivating this plant, since the demand for 
this fibre is practically unlimited. 

So, too, with jutes (Corchorus Capsularis and Olito- 
rius), the fibre from which is used to make grain sacks 
and cotton bagging. These plants can be grown to 
great perfection, and will be largely cultivated when 
the fibre can be successfully detached by machinery. 

Kentucky hemp (Cannabis sativa) can also be grown 
successfully upon the alluvial lands of the State. 



Forestry and Lumber. 



THE following are a partial list of the more im- 
portant trees and shrubs of the State: 
Oaks — Quercus alba, white oak; quercus aqua- 
tii-a, water oak; quercus catesbaei, turkey oak; 
quercus cinirea, sand jack oak; quercus falcata, Spanish 
oak; quercus lyrata, overcup oak; quercus miehauxii, 
cow oak; quercus nigra, black jack oak; quercus obtu- 
siloba, post oak; quercus palustris, pm oak; quercus 



phellos, willow oak; quercus punus, swamp chestnut oak; 
quereuL tinctoria, black chestnut oak; quercus virens, 
live oak. 

Hickories — Carya alba, scaly-bark hickory; carya 
amara, swamp hickory; carya aquatica, water hickory; 
carya porcina, pignut hickory; carya tomentosa, black 
hickory; carya olivaeformis, pecan. 

Ash — Fraxinus Americana, white ash; fraxinus 
platycarpa, water ash; fraxinus veredis, green ash. 



41 



Elms — TJlmus alata, wahoo or winged elm; ulmus 
fiilvu, slippery elm; ulmus Americana, white elm. 

Gums — Nyssa sylvatica, black gum; nyssa aquatica, 
tupc:lo fjiim; liquidambar styraeiflua, sweet gum. 

Magnolia — Giauca, sweet bay; grandiflora, magnolia 
macropliylla. cucumber tree. 

Pines — Echinata, short-leaf pine; palustris, long-leaf 
pine; tacda, loblolly, or old field pine. 

Maples — Acer baetatum, hard maple; acer rubium, 
red maple; acer saecharinum, sugar maple. 

Prunus — Americana, American plum; augustifolia, 
Cliichusaw plum; serotiua, wild cherr}'. 

Buckeye — Aesculus indet, bnckej^e; aescuUis pavia, 
red buckeye. 

Marslimallow — Hibiscus incanus, marshmallow; hi- 
biscus moschentos, marshmallow. 

Sumach — Rhus glabia, sumach; rhus eopallina, 
sumach. 

Haw — Viburnum, medium haw; viburnum pruni- 
folium, black haw; viburnum scabrellum, haw. 

Other Trees — Ostuja Virginica, iron wood; cornus 
floida, dogwood; sassafras officinale, sassafras; diospyrs 
Virginiana, persimmon; asimiara parviflora, Papaw; 
gleditschia triaeanthos, honey locust; gleditschla mono- 
sperma, water locust; hamamelis Virginica, witch hazel; 
oxydendrum arboreum, sour wood; myrica cerifera, wax 
myrtle; aluus aerrulata, alder; castanea puraila, chin- 
quepin; junipirus Virginiana, red cedar; fagus Ameri- 
cana, beech; tilia Americana, linden tree; carpinus Ameri- 
cana, hornbeam; ilex opaca, holly; enonymus Ameri- 
canus, burning bush; liriodendron tulipifera, tulip or 
poplar; Crataegus apiifolia, hawthorn; sambucus Cana- 
densis, alder; chronanthus Virginica, fringe tree; morus 
rubia, mulberry; maclura aurantiaca, Osage orange; 



betula rubra, red bircli; populus monilifera, Cottonwood; 
Salix — , willow (many species; catalpa bignoides, 
catalpa; platarius occidentalis, sycamore; negundo 
aceroides, box alder; celtis occidentalis, hackberry; tax- 
odium distichum, cypress; juglans nigra, black walnut; 
xanthoxylum clava, prickly ash. 

When the areas devoted to the above trees are 
known, some idea of the quantity of timber existing in 
Lcniisiana will be formed. Of the entire forest wealth 
of the United States over 60 per cent, is situated in the 
South, and of this amount Louisiana possesses the Uon's 
share. In fact, it may be said that 75 per cent, of this 
wonderful forest wealth is lying along the tributaries 
of the Mississippi River or Gulf of Mexico, and is 
readily accessible to the wharves of New Orleans and 
Raton Rouge. Millions of dollars have been recently 
invested in these timber resources, and the sawmills and 
planing machines of the North, like the cotton factories, 
are gradually moving South for large profits. The 
greatest timber wealth of this State is in its immense 
areas of long and short-leaf pine, and its unparalleled 
forests of cypress. While other Southern States share 
with us the claims for superiority, in both quality and 
quantity of the former, of the latter we stand without 
a rival, in both the immense quantity available and the 
excellent quality of the lumber made therefrom. Only 
a few years ago and our cypress lumber was but little 
known and appreciated; to-day it ranks with other varie- 
ties of timber in quantity, and surpasses all other in 
q\iality. The Cypress Lumber Manufacturing Associa- 
tion, which meets monthly in New Orleans, represents 
an output of over 300,000,000 feet of finished lumber per 
year. 



42 





DAIRY AND BA:^>J AT NORTH LOUISIANA EXPERIMENT STATION 
CALHOUN. LA. 





I SCENE ON NORTH LOUISIANA EXPERIMENT STATION. 
CALMOUN. LA. 



XLI 




A SCENE AT NORTH LOUISIANA EXPERIMENT STATION DURING THE AGRICULTUHAL FAI 



XLII 




PLAQUEMINE LOCKS 
XLIII 




(7f«w/f^ Li*. 



OIL GUSHER, NEAR JENNINGS. 



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SEAM OF COAL IN THE DOLET HILLS ' '_■ FEET THICK 



.\1.1V 



The adaptability of the cypress to the many uses 
in building — doors, blinds, windows, floors, inside finish, 
outside work, bevels and drop siding, etc., and its won- 
derful powers of duration, even when exposed to the 
vicissitudes of sunshine and rain, heat and cold, dry 
and wet climates, have made it a favorite wherever 
known since the times of the Pharaohs of Egypt. So 
highly has it been appreciated of late, that its current 
market prices have scarcely depreciated at all during 
the recent trying financial depression. It will receive 
paint easily, or can be hard-finished with the most beau- 
tiful effect. 

Other Woods — Next to cypress stands in importance, 
both as regards the quautitj' and excellent quality, our 
long-leaf pine. This tree furnishes also a large industry 
in each of the States of Alabama, Georgia, Florida, 
Mississippi, Arkansas and Texas, and is well-known all 
over the Americas, if not over the civilized globe. The 
area covered by the long-leaf pine in this State is 
enormous. 

The short-leaf pine forests abound in the region of 
oak uplands, and furnish a large number of square 
miles of available timber. 

Ash, oaks, magnolia, beech, walnut, gums, cotton- 
wood, maples, etc., are found in large quantities upon 
the bluff lands and inland streams of the State, and 
nowhere on earth is there presented finer opportunities 
for all manufactories of wood than here in Louisiana. 
Factories for wagons and carriages, hollowware, barrels, 
staves, hoops, ax and hoe handles, etc., could all be 
carried on here successfully with the materials gathered 
cheaply from our forests. Our Cottonwood and tulip 
(poplar) trees could be converted into boxes and paper, 
right on the banks of our streams, with cheap, deep 



water transportation to almost everywhere. Next to the 
wealth of our existing soils, comes the wealth already 
drawn from these soils in the shape of forest growth. 

The long-leaf pine is found more or less over the 
hill country of the State, yet it may be said to have two 
important centers, the eastern and western. The former 
embraces tlie parishes of north St. Tammany, Washing- 
ton, north Tangipahoa, most of St. Helena and East 
Feliciana. There is a considerable area of pine flats in 
north St. Tammany, south and west Tangipahoa and 
east Livingston parishes, and a narrow rim in southeast 
St. Helena parish, and in Calcasieu. The western center 
of the pine is situated in northwest Catahoula, west Cald- 
well, southeast Jackson, all of Winn, nearly all of Grant, 
except the narrow rim in the Red River Valley in the 
southwest portion of the parish, northwest and all west 
Rapides, a small area in northeast St. Landry, all north 
Calcasieu, south and west Natchitoches, and southwest 
Sabine. Alexandria is near the geographical center of 
the State, and within a radius of seventy-five miles of 
this important railroad center is situated the bulk of 
the great pine area of the State. 

The bulk of red cypress is situated south of the 
Red Riv.er and west of the Mississippi to the Sabine. 
The white cypress is a more generally diffused wood, 
and is even found as far north as Delaware. In Louis- 
iana it is to be found in all localities adapted to its 
growth. The sweet gum has no particular locality. It 
is a considerable feature in most forests; is rather plen- 
tiful in the Mississippi bottom and the river parishes. 

The tupelo gum is abundant in many wet bottoms 
of the State. The holly is everywhere as a scattering 
tree; the magnolia is found in great quantity on all the 



43 



bluflf lands of the State. Both these woorls have a great 
future vHlue. The ash, hickory and various oaks are 
common to the State. The live oak is found on the 
Southern, or Gulf Coast, on the Chenieres and buck 
ridges and bayous along the banks of the streams in 
many, if not all, the alluvial regions of the State. 

Xo mention has been niaile of the ash which is 
scattered throughout many of the upper parishes of the 
State, also the maple, and in a few localities the black 
walnut. The pecan is quite common in small bodies 
throughout the State, and is commonly preserved for the 
greatlj' increasing value of the ' ' thin-shelled Louisiana 
pecan nut." Great numbers arc being planted, and the 
young trees grafted with the most perfect samples form 
a profitable industry. Poplar and Cottonwood are also 
quite generally distributed in the upper parishes near 
the river, the haekberry, dogwood and sycamore like- 
wise. Tn localities the sassafras grows so abundantly 
as to deserve mention. 

As to facilities for transporting and marketing the 



lumber, the primitive methods of river rafting are being 
rapiilly supplanted by the railroads, and every modern 
appliance. There is very little timber in the State now 
that is not accessible to some means of transportation. 
With .'i,OUO miles of railroads, 322 miles of logging tram 
mads and ncjirly 4,000 miles of navigable streams, the 
transportation qu(^stion is not a difEcult one. 

Thus, in extent, in variety, in favor, as to locations 
and facilities of transportation, the lumber interests of 
Louisiana merit the attention of the wealthy capitalist, 
the competent, energetic manufacturer, and above all, 
tlie man of family who seeks to make a home where 
opportunity to "grow up with the country" makes a 
.small investment in the present sure capital for the 
future. 

There are hundreds of sawmills of large cut located 
on the several lines of railways and water courses, and 
('nornu)us shipments are annually made to the North, 
p]ast and West, and even to foreign countries, of both 
cypress and pine, uuequaled in finish anywhere. 



Fish. 



APROPOS of lakes, rivers and streams may be men- 
tioned the varied and abundan,t fish supply found 
in them all over the State, affording unending 
si)ort to the lovers of the piscatorial art. Every 
stream and lake has its own peculiar fish, fancied by 
the dweller on its banks to be unexcelled in gastronomic 
qualities. Besides the inland streams, I^akes Pontchar- 
train, Maurepas and others along the Gulf (Joast, furnish 
an abundance of fish, and are often resorted to by 



amateur sportsmen from New Orleans. But, beyond 
tlu'se, on the Gulf Coast, lies a mine of wealth but par- 
tially developed. The fish and oyster industry, which, 
it prosecuted to (he same extent as is done on the north 
.Atlantic Coast, or on the Chesapeake Bay, would render 
Louisiana more famous in this line than she is now for 
li(M- profusely fertile soils. The red fish, the pompano, 
(he mullet, the trout, the red snapper and the perch, 
and many other fish of large size and excellent quality 



44 



are to be found all along the Gulf Coast from the Pearl 
to the Sabine River. So, too, with oysters, that delicious 
bivalve, which here rivals in flavor the far-famed 
Cherrystone and Horn harbor products of the Chesa- 
peake Bay. If the cultivation of oysters was practiced 
upon our bays, inlets and bayous to the same extent and 
with the same intelligence as is followed upon the 



Chesapeake Bay, New Orleans would soon become a 
center of oyster packing houses, and share with Balti- 
more in the enormous profits now incident to siich ia- 
dustry. The West should be supplied exclusively with 
Gulf oysters, and nowhere can they be more cheaply or 
profitably grown than along the Gulf Coast bordering 
Louisiana. 



Oysters. 



THE great resources of Louisiana in its large pro- 
lUietion of sugar-cane, cotton, rice, lumber and 
fruits have hitherto kept in comparative obscurity 
what are generally deemed the minor — and 
wrongly considered the less remunerative — fields for the 
emploj'ment of capital and intelligent labor. Prominent, 
if not the principal, among these neglected industries are 
the vast fishery interests of the State, which, under 
energetic labor and scientific cultivation, will in a few 
years equal, if they do not surpass in the way of pecu- 
niary profit, the aggregate value of the entire State. 
The extent of the oyster territory is so vast, the supply 
so abundant and cheap, and so little labor and capital 
are required for its development, that its wonderful 
advantages and enormous profits once known, capital 
and labor will inevitably seek employment in what must 
eventually become a leading industry, far surpassing 
that of any State in the Union. 

On the eastern boundary, starting from the Kigolets, 
the small gut or strait connecting Lakes Borgne and 



Pontchartraln, and following the shore line southward 
and westward around the mouths of the Mississippi 
River to the Texas line, there is a coast of about OUO 
miles in length, if measured on straight lines from point 
to point. Making an allowance for the curvatures of 
the coast, the shores of salt water bays, inlets, lakes 
and islands, which fret this part of the State like net 
work, the littoral line will not fall short of fifteen hun- 
dred or two thousand miles. Taking into consideration 
the shelving, shallow beach adjacent to it, experts well 
acquainted with its geographical features estimate that 
the area suitable to planting and growing oysters is 
over 7,000 square miles or greater than the amount of 
acreage available in all the other States of the Union 
combined. The coast abounds in suitable places to 
which the mollusk can be transplanted from the seed 
bed, and under proper care developed into an oyster, 
which, for delicacy of its flavor, cannot be excelled 
the world over. East of the Mississippi River these 
natural beds are still numerous, and transplanting is 



46 



carried on at an increasing rate yearly. Not only do 
these beds supply the wants of the people of the Lower 
Coast, but quantities are shipped to New Orleans and 
Western markets, and hundreds of poachers or 
"pirates" — so called — from Mississippi carry away an- 
unally hundreds of schooner loads of the shell fish. 

The flavor of these bivalves here taken, although 
of excellent quality compared with those of the Atlantic 
States, yet is by no means equal to those taken from 
the choice planting grounds across the Mississippi, going 
west from the great river. Bayou Cook, Grand Bayou, 
Bayou Lachute, Grand Lake, Bayou Lafourche, Timbal- 
lier Bay, Last Island, Barrataria Bay, Vine Island Lake, 
Vermilion Bay, and the Calcasieu grounds furnish the 
best, those of Bayou Cook having, par excellence, the 
highest reputation in the markets of Louisiana and 
the neighboring States, and bringing a correspondingly 
higher price. 

The diiliculties, dangers and delays of transportation 
are now overcome by railways and canals, some already 



built and others projected, penetrating the best oyster 
regions; and capital is encouraged and protected in its 
investment, by recent State legislation, and the day is 
not far distant when the production will be immeasur- 
ably increased, the price for home consumption greatly 
reduced, and an export trade established which will 
supply the whole of the western territory of the United 
States, from the Mississippi to the Pacific Coast, at 
reduced prices. Not only to the capitalist is the field 
open, but to the skilled oyster culturist of Chesapeake 
and Delaware Bays, Long Island Sound, and the shores 
of Connecticut, the State offers cheap oyster lands for 
sale or to rent, and a free supply of seed. To all such, 
with a minimum of capital and skilled industry and 
energy, she opens her arms to welcome them to a home 
on the verge of her "summer sea," beneath skies where 
is hardly known what winter is, and to cheer them on 
to fortune and her own industrial development. This is 
no fair-seeming false promise, but one tendered in all 
sincerity, and based on facts which the writer has been 
careful to understate rather than overestimate. 



Guif Biologic Station. 



LOLflSlANA'S extensive coast line of 1,950 miles 
has always been known to be rich in food fishes, 
oysters, crabs, shrimp, stc. Realizing the import- 
ance of studying and protecting these coast pro- 
ducts, the Legislature of 1898 created a "Biologic Sta- 
tion." The Board of Trustees established this station 
on the Gulf in Cameron parish, and have had erected 



the necessary buildings and equipments. Laboratory, 
seines, trawls, tow nets, surface nets and yawls have 
been provided.. This station now proffers excellent facili- 
ties for biologic work. The laboratory was formally 
opened to students of biologic science two years ago. 

The United States Weather Bureau has a splendidly 
equipped station also, on the grounds. 



46 




CAPITAL CilY OIL MILL CO.. BATON ROUGE. LA, 





FOUNTAIN PRODUCED BY NATURAL PRESSURE FROM 3-' WELL 
AT REISERS MACHINE SHOP, LAKE CHARLES. 







ELEVATOR. SALT MINES, AVERY'S ISLAND. 



XLV 



ARTESIAN WELLS OF THE LAKE CHARLES ICE, LIGNT AND 
WATERWORKS COMPANY. 










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.MOWING O"^ COAu On TAy,_0, 

PBOPERTT IN DOLGT HILLS, 

SEAM 'i^a FEET THICK 



Oil wells on fire, near jennings, la. 



XLVI 





XLVII 



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PINE LOGS FOR SAW MILL 



WHEELES5 & WMITED, STEAM LOG LOADER. ALDENS BRIDGE. LA. 



XLvni 



Stock Raising and Dairying. 



No PORTION of the globe is better adapted to stock 
raising than the State of Louisiana. Our soils un- 
aided, will supply native grasses sufficient to main- 
tain cattle and horses through at least nine months 
in tlie year. The great variety of grasses, clovers and 
forage crops which can be grown so successfully upon 
all of our soils; our short winters, requiring shelter and 
extra feed for only a few months in the year; our numer- 
ous water courses, with their infinite number of tribu- 
taries, furnishing an abundant supply of water at all 
seasons, all conspire to make Louisiana a most desirable 
location for stock raising. The question may be asked: 
If these natural adva,ntages exist, why is it that more 
have not engaged in this industry? The ready reply is 
found in the fact that heretofore our entire agricultural 
world has been absorbed in the growing of our leading 
staples, sugar-cane, rice and cotton. Another potent 
reason may be found in the absence of packing factories, 
where a ready market for cattle, sheep and hogs might 
be found the year round. Both of these reasons are now 
gradually melting away. Sugar-cane and cotton no 
longer afford the handsome profits of the past to the 
planter, and the latter, particularly the cotton planter, 
is now diversifying his crops, and paying more attention 
to the raising of stock. A large majority of the horses 
of the State have been raised at home. Mules have been 
raised in sufficient quantities to demonstrate that, with 
proper care and attention, the finest and largest can be 
grown here, but only in a few instances has mule raising 
been pursued as a profession or special occupation. But 



many farmers are now raising both mules and horses 
for home demand, and some to sell. This home raised 
stock shows greater superiority for work than those 
raiseil elsewhere. The same natural conditions and ad- 
vantages apply as to cattle. 

In addition to ample pasturage and luxurious forage 
for cattle raising, fattening cattle for market has 
superior advantages in Louisiana, as is shown in many 
articles further on. 

Cotton seed meal and hulls from the many cotton 
seed oil mills, the rice bran, polish and shorts from our 
rice mills, and cheap molasses from our sugar factories, 
provide superior economic feeding rations for cattle 
feeders. Annually thousands of head of cattle from this 
and other States are fattened at our mills, and shipped . 
to the Northern and Western markets. Improved breeds 
of the dairy type, Jersey and Guernsey, and the beef 
type, Herefords. Durhams, Polled Angus and Devons, are 
being rapidly adopted, and the State is making great 
strides now in this direction. 

Hogs, likewise, are easily raised, and great interest 
is now being manifested in that line of farming. The 
"razor back" is fast disappearing, and in his place 
comes the Poland China, the Berkshire, Red Jersey and 
Essex. There are now several breeders in the State 
with herds as good as any. 

Hog raising, by the adoption of a proper rotation of 
crops, making the hog gather each crop, can be made 
exceptionally profitaldo, provided one can find a ready 
home market when they are fit for the shambles. With 



47 



packing house convenient, hog raising would soon be- 
come a leading industry of this State, and a most profit- 
able one. By planting an acre or two in February or 
early March, of a variety of early ripening sugar corn, 
in rows three feet apart and six to twelve inches in 
drill, it will be ready for the hogs in May. Succeed 
this with a similar patch of early sorghum, which will 
he ripe in June. Follow with Spanish peanuts, ripe in 
.Tuly. or early oowpeas, ripe at same time. Add to these 



Chufas and artichokes a late corn field with cowpeas, 
and a good lot of sweet potatoes, and you have the 
ni;iterial to grow and fatten many hogs. These lots 
sliould be aranged so that the hogs could gather them all, 
and simultaneously have access to a field of grass or 
clover, with an abundance of fresh, pure water. This 
is possible on nearly every farm. By adopting such 
a plan as the above, some of our best farmers have raised 
hogs for half a cent per pound. 



An Experiment With Beef Cattle. 



TIIK carload of grade Angus steers that were shipped 
from the Experiment Station at Baton Eouge, and 
topped the market early in January, 1904, at 
Chicago, demonstrated beyond a doubt the possi- 
bilities of beef production of the highest order in Louis- 
iana from feeding the by-products of our sugarhouses, 
rice mills and cotton .seed oil mills, provided the right 
kind of animals are iitilized for consuming these pro- 
ducts. They further denumstrated that the immunization 
fever does not permancmtly impair the development of 
a steer into a first-class beef type. There has been 
such universal interest in the results of these experi- 
ments, that a brief statement regarding the history of 
the steers and the manner of feeding will be of value 
to all who contemplate investigating the possibilities of 
beef production in Louisiana, or adjacent States. Dr. 
W. C. Stubbs, Director of the Experiment Stations, 
planned the experiment and committed the execution of 
the plan to W. R. Dodson, Assistant Director of the sta- 
tion at Baton Eouge. The cattle were purchased at 



Clinton, 111., through Jacob Ziegler and W. H. Wheelei. 
who were very much interested in the enterprise. The 
calves secured were from four to eight months old, and 
arrived in Baton Kouge in good condition. In November, 
IHOI, a few days after arrival, they were each inocu- 
lated w-ith a small quantity of defibrinated blood from a 
native animal, which produced a mild form of immuniza- 
ti(]n or Texas fever. Until they recovered from this 
artificially produced fever they were kept free of ticks. 
They were fed on rice bran, cotton seed meal and sugar- 
house molasses, with Bermuda and Lespedeza hay, which 
had been grown on the Station. As soon as the grass 
began to grow in the spring of 1902 they were placed 
on pasture, but a partial ration or concentrated feed con- 
tinued. The amount varied somewhat according to the 
condition of the pasture. Each steer was weighed at 
frequent intervals and a record kept of these weights. 
The gain was very satisfactory until the ticks began to 
be very numerous and the animals very heavily infested. 
As the season was unusually dry, and the pasture crowded 



48 



(fifty-five head of stock were pastured on less than 
twenty acres) the cattle became grossly infested with 
ticks. Consequently a very severe test was made of the 
efficiency of the immunization. All the steers developed 
more or less fever, and during the month of August a 
number of them lost in weight. However, they began 
to recover soon after the application of an insecticide 
to kill the ticks on them. The middle of November the 
cattle were placed in a lot where there were very few 
ticks, and every animal sprayed to destroy the ticks ad- 
hering to him, and each animal was fed in a stall a full 
ration twice daily. For ninety days the gain was a 
little over two pounds per day. However, they were 
not as fat as desired, a considerable portion of the gain 
having been utilized in growth. The feed was reduced 
to maintenance ration till the pasture was again good, 
and they were put on pasture the same as the previous 
season, for the purpose of making observations of the 
effects of a second summer. It was discovered late in 
the first season that the ticks that had developed several 
successive generations on these partially susceptible ani- 
mals had developed a greater degree of virulence, and 



when they infested a native born animal produced a 
degree of fever almost equal to that developed in these 
recently immunized steers. These steers, therefore, suf- 
fered more from the ticks than they would have, had 
they been associated with a large number of native ani- 
mals, or had it been possilde to have changed the 
pasture once or twice during the season. During the 
second season they were not allowed to be continuously 
infested with as many ticks as had been on them the 
previous season, and the results were much more satis- 
factory. Early in the fall they were put on full feed, 
aild made a gain of a very small fraction under two 
pounds per day. It was our purpose to market them 
during the early winter, but the market was not favor- 
able and they were held till the first of January. They 
were sold in ('hicago for .$,5.6.5 per hundred. A few days 
later, a good native, fairly fat, was sold in Baton Rouge 
from the station for $2.75, the highest price offered. 
Since it cost as much to put a pound of flesh on the 
native as it did on the high-grade Angus, it does not 
take a mathematician to figure that there was consider- 
able difference in the profits from the feeding. 



Dairying. 



WHILE in its infancy, has many advantages in Lou- 
isiana. The natural conditions of climate, cheap 
feed, and native pastures, pure water, and plenty 
of cool shade, are all provided liberally by Nature 
in Louisiana. The selection of the proper dairy cow, 
improved dairy machinery and appliances, the necessary 
knowledge to operate the dairy and to make good butter, 



becomes the only consi<leration. Dairies are now oper- 
ated in all the cities and towns of the State, while farm 
dairying is rapidly gaining ground in the rural districts 
where limited quantities of good butter are made in the 
family, and much of it is supplied to the home markets. 
There is great need for creameries in Louisiana, and the 
growth of this industry will ultimately give rise to their 



49 



introduction. The Jersey, Guernsey, and Devon are used, 
while the Holstein occupies the milk dairy. Some mag- 
nificent herds are to be found in the country districts in 
Louisiana. For the enthusiastic expert dairyman, Louis- 
iana is a most inviting field. 

The following, by Hon. F. L. Maxwell, of Mound, 
Louisiana, formerly of Indiana, will further emphasize 
the preceding facts: "I have fed a few head of cattle 
nearly every year for the past ten years. I have used 
corn meal, cotton seed, pea hay, turnips, pumpkins, cab- 
bage leaves and sweet potatoes, all with success. All 
of the above can be raised very cheaply on our Southern 
farms, and all can bo used in feeding cattle, hogs and 
sheep with success. In connection with the above, I 
would recommend to farmers who have facilities for 
shipping at cheap rates, to sell their cotton seed, and 
buy hulls and cotton seed meal instead. 

"I made the following test this year on cotton seed 
hulls and meal alone: I purchased twenty-six tons of 
cotton seed hulls and five tons of cotton seed meal, the 
former at a cost of $3.90, and the latter at $22 per ton 
delivered. The above was all fed to twenty-tlyee head 
of steers in forty-three days; the gain per head, per day, 
was three and one-half pounds. I was offered two cents 
per pound gross for the cattle the day they were put 
in the lot; at the end of forty-three days I shipped them 
to market and sold them at four cents per pound gross. 
I know of other gontlemon that have had more experi- 
ence in feeding than myself, and they have not only 
made plenty of money, but, on land that they could not 
raise more than fifteen to twenty bushels of corn, they 



are now raising eighty bushels of first-class com, and 
good crops of peas on the same land. 

' ' The farmers of Louisiana ought to raise their own 
horses, mules, cattle, sheep and hogs, and can do so with 
greater profit than in the Northwest. They have ad- 
vantages in climate and soil, and can raise so many 
things in abundance, and so cheaply, that our Northern 
brothers cannot raise. I would recommend Louisiana 
farmers to try a few head of good steers or cows, and 
prepare plenty of food crops, and then feed hulls and 
cotton seed meal with it; they will be surprised to see 
how quickly they can fatten the cattle, and what profit 
there is in it, besides the rich fertilizers they make 
clear, if they will only save it. After experimenting 
with these things, I am thoroughly convinced there is 
money in it. I am preparing large pastures, and am now 
buying all the cattle I can, with a view of feeding on 
a larger scale. I know of a gentleman in Illinois who 
has just invested in a large tract of land in the Tensas 
River swamp, is fencing it, and will put 600 head of 
cattle in it at once. 

"In regard to feeding horses and mules while at 
hard work, I have had splendid success with cut oats, 
ground corn and peas mixed, two parts of corn to one 
of peas. I would advise all farmers to raise plenty of 
oats and feed less corn. I cut my oats with a large 
ensilage cutter, and use a three-horse tread power. In 
regard to raising mules, I think I can safely say it is a 
success. I have them from sucking colts to five years 
old, and am pleased with the experiment. I have nine- 
teen colts this year." 



50 




UNLOADING CANE 




PICKING COTTON--AT END OF ROW 




SAMPLING COTTON 




STORING CANE ON A TROLLEY 




BIRD'S-EYE VIEW OF SHREVEPORT WITH PARISH COURT HOUSE IN FOREGROUND 

1, 






I-I 




LOUISIANA BANK AND TRUST COMPANY, SHREVEPORT, LA. 
1.11 



Sheep. 



THE long-leaf pine belts, the prairie section, and 
the dry hills of North Louisiana are specially well 
adapted to sheep raising. Formerly great flocks 
were raised in these sections on the ranch system, 
without feed or shelter. But the occupation of many of 
these lands has broken up the flocks. More recently 
there is a growing interest in sheep raising on the farm. 
Small flocks, headed by thoroughbred bucks of the 
Merino, Southdown or Shropshire breeds, are kept by 
many farmers. These provide good mutton for the 



farmer 's table, and early lambs for the market, as well 
as fair wool clips. The sheep business promises to grow 
to large proportions by this plan very soon. It costs 
practically nothing to raise sheep in Louisiana, the 
climate, water, and grazing conditions are so favorable, 
and wlien fattening for market, the cost of feeding being 
so cheap, and native feeds being so abundant, the ex- 
pense is reduced to a minimum. It is recognized that 
no line of stock raising pays better for the amount of 
capital invested. A flock pays for itself every year. 



Poultry Raising. 



WHILE it is usually regarded as a side issue on the 
farms, poultry raising is an important industry. 
Thousands of dollars worth of eggs and chickens, 
in the aggregate, find their way to all the local 
markets, and furnish many thrifty housewives with 
pocket money. There are many poultry breeders in the 



State, and thoroughbred or high-bred poultry are found 
on nearly every farm. The most popular farm breeds 
are the Leghorns, Plymouth Rocks, Langshan, Indian 
Game, and Wyandotte, the Bronze Turkey, and the Pekin 
Duck. No better opportunity is anywhere offered than 
in Louisiana for poultry raising. 



Mines and Minerals. 



SALT was made by the "Natchitoches" Indians and 
used by them as an article of barter with the 
neighboring nations before the white man invaded 
Louisiana. What is now known as the Drake 
"Salt Works," about thirty miles from the present city 



of Natchitoches, is believed to be the place in which 
these Indians obtained their supply. These salt pits 
were worked for salt until the close of the Civil War, 
when the more economic methods of making salt else- 
where caused all operations to cease. 



51 



Rayburn 's Salt Works, eight iiiiles from Bicnvillp, 
more distant from the earlier settlements, were not 
opened until 1840. They became extremely popular dur- 
ing the Civil War and were worked very extensively. 
After the war work was diseontinued, but evidences of 
former activities are everywhere visible. 

King's Salt Works, on Cotton Hayou, have a similar 
history to Rayburn 's — a eoritemiioraneous birth, develop- 
ment and deatli. 

Prices' .Salt Works, Bistineau (Salt Works, on Lake 
Bisteneau; Sabine works, on Sabine River, in Sabine 
Parish; salt wells on Catahoula Lake and saline springs 
near Negreet Bayou, have all been utilized in the past 
for the manufacture of salt. 

But the most important salt deposits of the State 
are to be found in the five islands on the coast. 

As early as 1791, salt was made from brine springs 
on Petite Anse (Avery's) Islanil. In 1862 large deposits 
of very pure rock salt were iliscovered, and since that 
time this island has furnished hundreds of thousands of 
tons of salt. Over five hundred tons of salt are daily 
mined at the present time on this island, and the most 
improved machinery used for preparing it for market. 

In 189.5 salt was discovered on ('ote Carline (Jeffer- 
son '.s Island), the auger going 1,SI1II feet through pure 
salt. Though this wonderful development was made by 
boring, no attempt has as yet been made to utilize it. 

In December, IS9G, salt was tliscovereil on Belle Isle. 
A large conqiany was organized for working it and are 
now diligently sinking the necessary shafts, ami will 
soon be putting salt on the market. 

In the summer of 1897 salt was discovered on Grand 
Cote (Week's) Island. Myles & Co. have succeeded in 
sinking the necessary shafts, erecting suitable machinery 



and are now i)lacing several hundred tons of salt on the 
market. 

Up to the present time, no salt has been revealed on 
Cote Blanche Island, though there is every reason to 
Ixdieve that it exists there in abundant quantities. 

In thickness and purity these salt deposits outrank 
any yet known in this country, and rank third, if not 
second, in the great salt deposits of the world. 

Recently, in boring for oil near Anse la Butte, im- 
mense beds of pure salt have been penetrated, at depths 
of L'dO feet or more from the surface. In fact, it may be 
])ositively stated that there is already in sight salt 
eiuiugh in Southwestern Louisiana to supply the markets 
of this country for an indefinite period. Add to the 
great extent of these salt deposits, the known purity of 
the salt and ease with which it can be mined, and the 
great value to the State can easily be estimated. Some 
day, after the numerous railroads now penetrating Lou- 
isiana from the north to the south shall have been com- 
pleted and well equipped, the numerous salt outcrops of 
North Louisiana, alrea<ly mentioned, will again be worked 
with profit. 

The richest mine of sulphur in the world occurs in 
Southwest Louisiana, at Sulphur City, in Calcasieu 
Parish. It is now shipping over 500 tons of sulphur 
daily, and will, it is said, increase this output in the near 
future to 1,.500 tons. 

From borings made by the company now working 
this mine, at least forty millions of tons of sulphur un- 
derlie their lands. A novel process for working this 
sulphur i)revails. Superheated water is forced through a 
pipe into the sulphur. This water melts the .sul])hur. 
which, being heavier than water, falls to the bottom 
and is pumped up in a liquid condition tlircnigh a smaller 



62 



pipe, enclosed in the larger one, through which super- 
heated water was forced. The melted sulphur is drawn 
into tanks, where it solidifies. After solidification, it 
is broken up and shipped. No more attractive sight 
could be desired than to see several acres of solid sulphur, 
five to eight feet thick, adjoining the works of the 
Union Sulphur Company. The presence of this vast bed 
of sulphur justifies further exploitation in this section 
of the State for this valuable mineral, and hopes are 
strongly entertained that some of the many borings for 
oil ill this section will reveal valuable beds of sulphur. 

Limestones and Marbles outcrop at Winnfield, 
Coochie Brake, Bayou Chicot and other places in the 
State. All of these outcrops can be easily used for the 
manufacture of lime, since analyses show them to be 
nearly pure carbonate of lime. Much of this limestone 
can be used for building purposes. 

Below the surface this limestone passes into blue 
and white banded marble, susceptible of an excellent 
polish. It is believed that when these beds are thor- 
oughly exploited, marble of excellent quality can be ob- 
taincil. Samples are to lie found in the Louisiana Exhibit 
in New Orleans. 

The existence of oil in Southern Louisiana has been 
known for nearly forty years, but no special attention 
was given the subject by scientists, oil men and capi- 
talists until after the discovery of the famous Beaumont 
(Tex.) field in 1901. 

Promoters and "experts" claiming to be geologists, 
and worthless companies, have been instrumental in 
wasting large sums of money in prospecting for oil in 
Louisiana and other Gulf border States. But, though 
much has been lost in ' ' wild-catting, ' ' there are, never- 
theless, regions of local extent in South Louisiana worthy 
of the serious attention of drillers and capitalists. 



To diFtinguish between the true and false prospects 
for oil, one must look into the geology of the area con- 
cerned. 

To one passing over the remarkably level plains of 
the southern part of the State, their geology seems re- 
markably simple, i. e., coastwise, sloping formation, of 
wide distribution and presumably of even vertical thick- 
ness. In fact, many ill-informed writers have expatiated 
on the perfect simplicity of structure in this coastal 
|dain region. One's first impressions of perfect sim- 
plicity are somewhat jarred at the appearance of the 
strangely elevated Five Islands, rising up boldly from 
the surrounding sea marshes, near Vermilion and Cote 
Blanche Bays. He finds, too, at Anse la Butte a mound 
of several acres in extent rising considerably above the 
level of the surrounding country, and in juxtaposition 
with a marsh similarly depressed below the same datum 
plain. At Mamou prairie similar cmditions obtain. In 
St. Landry parish a thick-bedded limestone juts out 
frciin the soil in the sombre pine woods, dipping at an 
iingle of 3.5 degrees with the horizon and producing a 
riilge by its uplift. Again, well records show that the 
cap-rock of the Beaumont oil bearing stratum is curved 
abruptly ujiwards in a huge dome, though this is some 
1,000 feet below the present surface of the land, and 
its presence a matter of mere speculation, except for 
the well records. The limestone is porous and cracked, 
similar indeed to that of St. Landry and Winn parishes, 
but no decided fault is proven, and to this fact is doubt- 
less due the accumulation of the large amount of oil 
found there. The well striking mo.st rock at Anse la 
Butte brought out a core, proving that the bedding 
planes of the rocks in the well are now situated at 45 
degrees with the plane of the horizon. 



63 



These statements will, perhaps, suffice to indicate 
that in trying to worlc out the geology of Southern Lou- 
isiana, two classes of rocks must be kept sharply sepa- 
rated, viz., the one, older, greatly upturned and folded 
and faulted class, and the newer, unconsolidated clays 
and sands that submerge, as it were, or cover up, the 
great irregularities of the older rocks below. 

It is in connection, or in proximity with, these older 
rocks that the valuable substances, sulphur, salt, gas and 
oil occur in Southern Louisiana. Naturally, they may 
not now be found in tliese older rocks, for by percolation, 
gas pressure, salt water pressure, solution, they may be 
removed to adjacent newer beds. When oil has so 
leached into porous strata and has been held from further 
motion by impervious layers of salt water, it may ac- 
cumulate in considerable quantities, and when pierced 
by the drill will produce an oil well. The porous layer, 
if of sand, is called generally "oil sand," whether it 
is of one material or another, whether coarse or fine. 
Care may well be taken not to suppose this expression 
has any other significance than any sand that is impreg- 
nated with oil. 

Geologically, we believe the oil obtained in Louis- 
iana is being taken from (piaternary sands. It has been 
found oozing out at the surface at Sulphur and Anse la 
Butte. It occurs in sand beds varying from 28 to 500 
feet below the surface, near Vinton. It occurs in a fine 
sand in the Welsh field. In a fine and in a coarse sand 
in the Mamou area, and in various sands at Anse la 
Butte. 

The Welsh field is located in Calcasieu parish, about 
three miles west of Welsh. But little hard rock is en- 
countered in sinking the wells, sand, clay and gravel 
predominating, to a depth of about 1,000 feet, where the 
oil is found in a fine sand. Of the five or six wells now 



producing, one flows, the remaining are pumped; all yield 
perhaps 400 barrels daily of pure oil, though three or 
four-fold that quantity of salt water. The Southern 
Pacific No. 1 is pumping fully as much as a j'ear ago 
and of a somewhat better quality. 

The oil of this field sells to local rice planters, mills, 
and is shipped occasionally by rail. It is of a superior 
quality to the Jennings and Beaumont oil and retails for 
$1.00 per barrel. The Southern Pacific already has a 
pipe line connection with its main railway, one mile 
distant. 

One hundred acres would cover the present produc- 
ing area. 

The Jennings (Mamou) field is aobut six miles north- 
east of Jennings, in the Mamou prairie. The well en- 
counter but comparatively insignificant beds of hard rock 
as a rule, and there is said to be generally no cap rock. 
The}' are from 1,700 to 1,875 feet in depth and obtain 
their oil, sometimes pure, sometimes with a large per- 
centage of salt water, from sands varying in coarseness. 
Of the 35 or 40 wells now flowing or being pumped the 
product is from 50 to 1,200 barrels each daily. Oil is 
shipped b.y pipe-line to the Southern Pacific Railroad. 
The Jennings-Heywood four-inch line going to Jennings; 
the Southern's eight-inch, to Mermentau, and the Crow- 
ley two-inch, to Crowley. Thirty cents per barrel is 
the present shipping price. 

Owing to the uncertainty of titles to these lands, 
considerable areas of promising oil territory remain still 
untouched. An acre in the proven field sold a short time 
ago for $1,200. The well put down has flowed 49 aays 
consecutively, and yielded 70.000 barrels of oil. It is 
now pumping 1,000, barrels daily. Available, perhaps, 
300 acres. 



54 





FREArt or NATUnE-DOuaLE CYPRESS THEE 



AN OLD PECAN TREE GRAFTED 



LIII 







i "* 










LEVEE CONSTRUCTION. 



LIV 





STAVE FACTORY AT JONEIBOHO. LA. 



A SAW MILL. WITH LOG POND. JONESBORO, LA. 



LV 




fiCCLAIMED ALLUVrAL LANDS ON TMC ATCHAFAI_AYA RIVER 




CUTTING 3UGAR CANE-N S DOUGHERTYS PLACE 




) HI. 



i'ti?i;,«aws^^S?(»''-vi~.v,-<«^ 



J 



LOADING CARS FROM CART5 




COTTON COMPRESS — CAPACITY 1.000 EALE5 PER DAY. 



The Ansc-Ia-Butte region is still little understood. 
Two wells capable of producing 20 barrels daily are in 
existence, but the area is doubtless quite limited, for 
the underlying rocks are tilted up at a high angle, the 
area around has been tested and proven without oil, and 
the central part of the elevated or interesting area is 
underlaid by a salt dome. A ring around the salt dome 
of 50 or 75 acres will furnish a fairly paying quantity 
of oil. 

At Sulphur oil is known to exist, but its exploitation 
is necessarily limited to the company owning all the 
adjacent lands. At the Vincent place, three miles south- 
west of Vinton,, oil is known to exist near the surface, 
but its provenance has not been ascertained, neither have 
deeper wells thus far proved successful. 

Lignite of very fine quality and in large quantity 
has recently been uncovered in the Dolet Hills; Analyses 
recently made show the following average composition: 
Water, 32 per cent; volatile matter, 34 per cent; fixed 
carbon, 31 per cent; ash, 3 per cent. Thermal value 
with 15.2 per cent moisture is 9883 B. T. U. 

The water evaporates on exposure with but little 
slacking in the coal. This deposit, varying in thickness 
from six to eight feet, covers an area of over 40,000 
acres, situated between two main lines of railroad run- 
ning north and south. The coal can easily be mined 
above the intersecting branches. Wood in great quan- 
tities everywhere abounds and markets for the coal can 
easily be obtained in northern Louisiana and Texas. 

Geological investigations show that this formation 
underlies a large part of Northwestern Louisiana, with 
numerous outcrops from the Ouachita to the Sabine. On 
the latter stream, near Sabine town, is a bed of lignite 
over five feet thick. Other prominent outcrops are near 
Mansfield, Many and Shreveport. 



Good brick clays are abundant in the alluvial and 
bluff formations, and brick kilns are in evidence in every 
village. On the Illinois Central and Northeastern Rail- 
roads brick of excellent quality are manufactured in 
great quantities. Fine pressed brick, highly ornamental, 
is also made on the latter road. Elsewhere on the 
Eocene formations good brick are manufactured, also 
common articles of earthenware. In the Grand Gulf 
Hills white clays are found, which will doubtless make 
excellent pottery. 

Sandstone occurs in this State in two forms, ferru- 
ginous, from the Eocene and Lafayette hills, and the 
silicious sandstones of the Grand Gulf. 

The first has a local importance, while the second is 
already extensively used for rip-rap and jetty work and 
railroad ballast. It may possibly be used for building 
stones. Quarries have been opened at Bayou Toro, 
Boyee and Harrisonburg. 

Gravel is now extensively used in our towns and 
cities for street improvement, and also railroad ballast. 
Gravel beds occur in various portions of the State, mainly 
in the Lafayette formations. Extensive beds have been 
opened in Ouachita parish, from which the city of Monroe 
and the V. S. & P. Eailroad have taken liberal supplies. 

Iron Ores occur in form of nodular concretions, or 
thin plates, in nearly all of the old tertiary beds, and 
occasionally in the Lafayette sands. They are badly scat- 
tered, and as yet have had no economic value, though 
selected specimens give good results upon analysis, a 
few showing over 50 per cent of metallic iron. 

Marls, rich in carbonate of lime, consisting mainly 
of shells and clay, are found in the Claiborne formation 
of North Louisiana. They are only of local interest, 
having only traces of phosphoric acid and potash. 



55 



Heneath the sul])hiir (le])osits already doscrilied occur 
imnieuse betis of gypsum, which have never been worked. 
Klsewhere in the State (;y]iSMin is associated with lime- 



stone. Selenite crystals are abundant in the .Tackson age, 
along the Ouachita River. 



The Parishes of Louisiana. 



THE State of Louisiana is divided into fiftyuinc 
parishes, or counties, the woril "parishes" being 
strictly a localism, and has exactly the same mean- 
ing as county. Of these tifty-nine parishes, fifty- 
five are reached by navigable streams, which are open 
nearly all of the year, and furnish means of transporta- 
tion by this cheapest of all inetluids. Tliey also create 
great competition among the railroad lines, and thus 
it is that Louisiana enjoys unusually low freight rates. 
These parishes are naturally divided into certain classes, 
which classification is based on the character of soil 
found in different sections -of the State. Starting with 
the north Louisiana parishes, we find the first great agri- 
cultural division known as the Good Uplands. These 
lands are from .300 to .500 feet above the level of the 
sea. The soil is gray or yellow sandy loam, and very 
fertile. If washes easily, however, unless cultivated by 
horizontal plowing or embankments. The sub-soil is a 
ileep, sandy iday, and retains fertilizers well. tinder 
this classification we find the parishes of Caddo, DeSoto, 
Sabine, Bossier, Webster, Red River, Claiborne, Bienville, 
I'nion, Jackson, Ouachita, Morehcuise. and parts of Cald- 
well and P^ast and West Feliciana. 

The ml lands are on high ridges, but are very tena- 
cious, anil are not easily washed. They are very fine 



cotton and corn lauds, but are especially adapted to 
small grain. The natural forest growth of these lauds 
are oaks of different varieties, dogwood, beech, sassafras, 
gum, ash, maple and shortleaf j)ine. Most of the 
parishes placed under this head have alluvial land bor- 
dering on the streams which intersect them. 

The alluvial region comprises the most fertile agri- 
cultural lands of the State. They are those parishes 
which border on the Mississippi River, the Red River, 
the Ouachita and their tributaries, the Gulf Coast and 
lakes. This region occupies about 19,000 square miles, 
and its vast j)ossibilities are inconceivable. The lands 
of this section are now leveed against the annual en- 
croaching floods of the rivers which traverse them. 
These levees are maintained by the United States Govern- 
ment and the State Government, and several millions of 
dollars are s)ient every year in enlarging and strengthen- 
ing them. The lands in this region are higher priced 
on account of their great producing value; but can be 
bought at rates that are reasonable when the value of 
the land is considered. The parishes which consist of 
or contain portions of alluvial lands are Hast Carroll, 
Madisiui. Tensas, Concordia, Morehouse, Oua(diita, Union, 
W'est Carridl, Richland, Franklin, CahUvell, Catahoula, 
Point Coupee, West Baton Rouge, Tlierville, Ascension, 



56 



Assumption, St. James, St. John, St. Charles, Jefferson, 
Orleans, St. Bernard, Plaquemines, Lafourche, Terre- 
bonne, parts of Avoyelles, West Feliciana and East Baton 
Rouge. 

The hlufif lands are those which are so called on ac- 
count of the existence of a ridge or bluff which runs 
along the eastern side of the Mississippi River, from 
about Baton Rouge until the intersection with the Mis- 
sissippi is reached. These bluffs are the first undula- 
tions of the great Appalachian system of mountains. 
The lands on the bluffs are composed of clays, but are 
fertile and productive. They are among the oldest lands 
in the State; having been cultivated for long years. On 
the western side of the Mississippi River only scattering 
bluff lands are found. These run through West Carroll, 
Richland, Franklin, and then in scattered patches on to 
the Gulf Coast. 

ACADIA PARISH. 

Acadia Parish is situated in the southwestern part 
of the State, and contains 394,240 acres of land, and has 
a population of 23,483. 

The formation is prairie; soil fertile and productive. 
It is drained by Bayou Nezpique to the west, and Queue 
de Tortue on the south, and through its central portions 
by Bayous Cannes and Plaquemines Brulee. 

Water is plentiful and good throughout the parish. 

Oil has been discovered in paying quantities. The 
Mamou field has furnished several gushers of consider- 
able magnitude. 

The Southern Pacific Railroad and branches pass 
through the parish; Crowley, situated on this line, is 
the parish seat; population 4,214, and one of the most 
prosperous cities in the State. 



Rice and sugar are the principal crop productions; 
the largest rice producing parish in the State; corn, 
cotton, hay, oats, sweet and Irish potatoes, and cowpeas, 
are also produced. 

The fruits and nuts are the orange, grape, pear, 
prune, peach, fig, pomegranate and pecan. Timber is 
found along the bayous and coulees, suitable for build- 
ing and fencing, embracing the varieties of oak, cypress, 
Cottonwood, elm, gum, ash, sugarwood, sycamore, persim- 
mon and willow. The raising of live stock is a profit- 
able industry, and sheep, cattle, horses and hogs thrive 
and increase remarkably well here; many of the farmers 
being largely interested in wool growing. 

Game is found, such as rice birds, partridges, plovers, 
becasine and jack snipe, and papabot and doves. 

Very little public land remains in the parish. Land 
is worth from $5.00 to $50.00 per acre. 

ASCENSION PARISH. 

This parish is situated in the southeastern part of 
the State, and is divided by the Mississippi River, which 
flows through its southwestern portion. 

It contains 238,720 acres of land, the formation of 
which is about equally divided between alluvial land and 
wooded swamp; the soil being exceedingly rich and 
highly productive; population 24,142. 

It is drained by the Mississippi and Amite Rivers, 
and Bayous Manchac and Les Acadien and their branches. 

The Yazoo and Mississippi Valley Railroad traverses 
the parish along the east bank of the Mississippi River, 
and the Texas and Pacific Railway, along the west bank. 
The Texas and Pacific also has a branch line running 
along the east bank of Bayou Lafourche. 

Donaldsonville, population 4,105; situated on the 



57 



west bank of the Mississippi River, and on the line of 
the Texas and Pacific Railway, is the parish seat, and 
a thriving, progressive little city, with saw mills, rice 
mill, canning factor}', and other industries. Cistern water 
is generally used. 

Sugar is the main crop of the parish; rice, corn, 
cotton, hay, oats, peas, sweet and Irish potatoes, tobacco 
and garden truck are produced. 

Fruits and nuts are, the orange, fig, pomegranite, 
plum, pear, peach, grape, prune, and pecan. Cattle and 
hogs are raised to some extent, and some few sheep and 
horses. Game is found, such as bear, deer, coons, pos- 
sums, squirrels, mink, becasine, snipe, partridges, wild 
ducks and wild geese. Fish are plentiful in the streams 
and lakes; black bass, trout, and the common varieties 
of perch. There are large areas of splendid cypress tim- 
ber, ash, oak, willow, Cottonwood, persimmon and 
magnolia. 

The parish contains several thousands acres of 
United States Government land. Land is worth from 
$5.00 to $75.00 per acre. 

ASSUMPTION PABISH. 

This parish is situated in the southern part of the 
State, and contains 227,200 acres of land. The formation 
is composed of alluvial land and wooded swamp; soil 
rich and highly productive. 

It is drained by Bayous Lafourche, Grant and Vin- 
cent, and Grand River and Grand Lake. 

The Southern Pacific (main line) runs through its 
extreme southern sections, and has a branch line, run- 
ning from Xapoleonville, south, connecting with the 
main line at Schriever Junction. The Texas and Pacific 
Railway also has a branch line, traversing the parish 



north and south, along the east bank of Bayou Lafourche, 
connecting with the main line at Donaldsonville. 

Napoleonville, situated on Bayou Lafourche, is the 
jiarish seat. 

Sugar is the chief crop, and rice, corn, hay, oats, 
sweet and Irish potatoes, peas, tobacco, and the garden 
varieties are produced. The fruits and nuts are, the 
orange, fig, pear, plum, peach, persimmon, pomegranate 
and grape, pecans and English walnuts. 

The timber is chiefly cypress, oak, gum and persim- 
mon, with some Cottonwood, willow and sycamore. Some 
live stock is raised, mostly cattle and hogs. There is 
such game as partridges, rice birds, plovers, snipe and 
becasine, coons, opossums, mink and squirrels; also, in 
season, wild ducks, wild geese and woodcock. 

The bayous and lakes furnish varieties of fish, 
among them trout and black bass, and white perch. 

There is very little United States Government land 
in the jiarish. 

Land in Assumption parish is worth from $1.50 to 
$60.00 per acre. 

AVOYELLES PARISH. 

Avovellos parish is situated near the central part of 
the State, and contains 5.39,520 acres of land; population, 
29,701. 

The formation is of several varieties; alluvial land, 
jirairie, bluff land and wooded swamp, the latter pre- 
dominating. The soil is fertile and productive. It is 
drained by the Red, Saline and Atchafalaya Rivers, and 
Bayous I-ong, Natchitoches, Avoyelles, DeGlaise and 
Rouge. 

Water is plentiful and of good quality. 

The main line of the Texas and Pacific Railroad 



58 




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COUNTRY HOME IN CLAIBORNE PARISH 



LX 



passes through its southwestern section, and has two 
branch lines traversing the parish east and west and a 
portion of the northern central part of the parish. Louis- 
iana Railway and Navigation Company's line crosses the 
parish from northeast to southwest. Marksville, popula- 
tion 837, is the parish seat, 

The products are chiefly cotton and corn; sugar-cane, 
alfalfa, oats, hay, peas, sweet and Irish potatoes, sor- 
ghum and garden varieties are also produced. 

The fruits and nuts succeed well here, such as 
peaches, pears, pecans, apples, figs, plums, quinces, grapes, 
pomegranates, persimmons and the smaller kinds. 

The live stock industry is profitable, and cattle, 
sheep, hogs, horses and mules are raised in abundance. 

Game is plentiful, such as bear, deer, foxes, coons, 
opossums, squirrels, rabbits and wild turkeys, partridges, 
rice birds, robbins, snipe, woodcock, wild duck, wild 
geese, pheasants and polvers. Fish of excellent quality 
and large quantities abound in the lakes and streams. 
The timber of this parish is very extensive, comprising 
oak, ash, cypress, gum, elm, Cottonwood, poplar, pine, 
locust beeeii, maple, hickory, holly, magnolia, walnut, 
hackbcrry, sycamore, persimmon and willow. 

There is a small quantity of United States Govern- 
ment land in the parish. 

Land is wortli from $2.50 to $25.00 per acre. 

BIENVILLE PARISH. 

This parish is situated in the northwestern part of 
the State; population 17,588, and contains 547,840 acres 
of land. Its formation is good upland, red, sandy clays; 
the soil being fertile and productive. 

It is drained by Lake Bistenau on the west, and by 
Bayous Blacklake, Saline, and the headquarters of Dug- 
demona Eiver in other sections. 



The Vicksburg, Shreveporl and Pacific Eailroad 
passes through the northern portion of the parish. The 
Louisiana and Northwestern Eailroad runs north and 
south, from Gibsland, on the Vicksburg, Shreveport and 
Pacific Eailroad, connecting on the north with the Cot- 
ton Belt, and on the south with the Texas and Pacific 
and the Louisiana Eailway and Navigation Company. 

Water is abundant and good. Many springs, creeks 
and branches. 

Arcadia, situated on the Vicksburg, Shreveport and 
Pacific Eailroad, population 924, is the parish seat, and 
has a cotton compress, cotton oil mill, ice factory, elec- 
tric light plant and other industries. 

The timber is oak, pine, ash, cypress, persimmon, 
gum, beech, elm, holly, hickory, sycamore, poplar and 
Cottonwood. 

Cotton is the chief crop product; corn hay, oats, 
peas, sugar-cane, sweet and Irish potatoes, sorghum, and 
the garden varieties, all do well. A diversified farming 
section. 

The fruits and nuts are, apples, pears, peaches, 
pecans, plums, quinces, grapes and figs. 

Cattle, hogs, sheep and horses are raised and thrive 
well. 

Game is found, such as deer, coons, opossums, foxes, 
squirrels, rabbits, mink, wild turkeys, wild ducks and 
geese, partridges, snipe and woodcock. Fish of good 
quality are found in the lakes and streams, among them 
bar fish, trout, bass and perch. There are deposits of 
salt, fireclay, potters ' clay, marl and green sand. 

There are several thousand acres of United States 
Government land in the parish. 

Lands are worth from $2.00 to $15.00 per acre. 



59 



BOSSIER PARISH. 

This parish is situated in the northwestern part of 
the State, and contains 494,720 acres of land; population, 
24,153. 

The laud is good upland, alluvial in formation, and 
is very fertile and productive. It is drained by Bodcau 
Bayou, Bodcau Lake, Eed River and numerous small 
streams. The water is plentiful and of good quality. The 
Vieksburg, Shreveport and Pacific Railroad traverses the 
south central part of the parish, the St. Louis South- 
western Railroad its northwestern, and the Louisiana 
Railway and Navigation Company its southwestern sec- 
tion. Benton, population 463, on the St. Louis South- 
western Railroad, is the parish seat. 

The timber is, oak, pine, ash, cypress, persimmon, 
gum, beech, elm, holly, hickory, sycamore, poplar and 
Cottonwood. Cotton is the chief crop product: corn, hay, 
alfalfa, oats, peas, sugar-cane, sweet and Irish potatoes, 
sorghum, and the garden varieties all do well. The 
fruits and nuts are, apples, pears, peaches, pecans, plums, 
quinces, grapes and figs. 

Cattle, hogs, sheep and horses are raised and thrive 
well. 

Game is found, such as deer, coons, opossums, foxes, 
squirrels, rabbits, mink, wild turkeys, wild ducks and 
geese, partridges, snipe ;ind woodcock. Fish of good 
quality arc found in the lakes and streams, among them 
bar fish, trout, bass and perch. 

There are deposits nf salt, fire clay, potters' clay, 
marl and green sand. There are several thousand acres 
of United States Government land in the parish. 

Land in Bossier parish is worth from $2.00 to $25.00 
per acre. 



CADDO PARISH. 

Tills parish is situated ^n the northwestern corner of 
the State, population 44,499, .'nd contains 545,280 acres 
of land. It is of good upland and alluvial formation, 
with soil fertile and productive. 

Red River drains the eastern borders, and Black, 
Clear, Caddo, Sodus and Cross Lakes, and a number of 
small streams drain the other sections. 

The Texas and Pacific, the Shreveport and Houston, 
the Louisiana Railway and Navigation, the Vieksburg, 
Shreveport and Pacific, the Kansas City Southern, the 
Missouri, Kansas and Texas, and the St. Louis South- 
western Railroads come into the parish. 

Shreveport, population 16,013, situated on the 
western bank of the Red River, is the parish seat. It 
is the second largest city in the State. Water is plentiful 
and good. 

The timber is oak, gum, cypress, elm, beech, hickory, 
Cottonwood, willow, poplar, sycamore and locust. The 
fruits and nuts arc, peaches, pears, apples, pecans, plums, 
persimmons, quinces, grapes, pomegranates and figs, while 
the smaller varieties do well. The crop productions are 
diversified, with cotton in the lead; corn, alfalfa, oats, 
hay, peas, sweet and Irish potatoes, tobacco, sorghum, 
sugar-cane and the garden varieties produce excellent 
crops. 

Live stock thrive, and cattle, sheep, hogs and horses 
are raised. There are some fine grades of stock to be 
found here. Game is abundant, and fishing very good 
in the lakes and streams. 

There are several thousand acres of United States 
(lovprnment land in the parish. 

Lands in Caddo parish are worth from $2.00 to $50.00 
per acre. 



60 



CALCASIEU PAEISH. 

This parish has the largest in area in the State, and 
contains 2,091,520 acres of land, with a population of 
30,428. 

Its formation embraces prairie, pine hill, pine flat, 
coast marsh, and a little alluvial and wooded swamp 
land. 

It is drained by Bayous Nezpique and the Sabine, 
Mermentau, and the Calcasieu Eiver, with its many 
tributary streams. Water is plentiful and of good quality. 

The Southern Pacific, the St. Louis, Watkins and 
Gulf, and the Kansas City Southern Railroads traverse 
the parish. Lake Charles, situated on Lake Charles, is 
the parish seat; population, 6,680. 

The crop productions are principally rice and sugar; 
corn, cotton, sweet and Irish potatoes, peas, hay, oats 
and garden crops are also raised. 

The fruits and nuts are, the orange, grape, peach, 
pear, plum, pecan, guava, pomegranate, prune and fig. 

The timber is, pine, oak, gum, elm, sugarwood, Cot- 
tonwood, willow, locust and persimmon. The lumber in- 
terests, long-leaf yellow pine, are extensive, and millions 
are here invested. Live stock raising is a profitable in- 
dustry, and sheep, cattle, hogs and horses are extensively 
raised. Game is found, such as deer, foxes, coons, rab- 
bits, squirrels, snipe, beeasine, partridges, rice birds, 
plovers, robins, wild ducks and geese, woodcock, pheas- 
ants and papabot. Fishing is good in the streams and 
lakes; bass, trout and carp are found. 

Inexhaustive deposits of sulphur are found, and 
gypsum exists in great quantities. Petroleum oil of a 
high grade has been bored for and found in paying quan- 
tities. Good pumping wells have been produced, but so 
far no gusher. 



There are several thousand acres of United States 
Government land in the parish. 

Lands are worth from $1.00 to .$50.00 per acre. 

CALDWELL PARISH. 

This parish is situated in the north central part of 
the State, contains 348,800 acres of land, and has a popu- 
lation of 6,917. Its formation is alluvial, pine hills and 
good uplands. Its physical outlines or topographic 
features are very rugged and broken in the upland por- 
tions of the parish, but the soil is fertile and productive. 

It is drained by the Ouachita and Boeuf Rivers, and 
Bayous Castor, Lafourche and Marengo. 

The St. Louis, Iron Mountain and Southern Rail- 
way runs through the parish, north and south. Columbia, 
situated on the Ouachita River, is the parish scat. Water 
is plentiful and of good quality. The timber consists 
of piue, oak, ash, beech, hickory, Cottonwood, gum, elm, 
poplar, magnolia, locust, holly, maple, walnut, persim- 
mon and willow. The principal crop is cotton; corn, 
oats, hay, peas, sweet and Irish potatoes, sorghum, sugar- 
cane, tobacco and garden products are raised. 

Live stock are raised, consisting of catttle, hogs and 
sheep, in large quantity. Game abounds, such as deer, 
foxes, coons, opossums, squirrels, rabbits, wild turkeys, 
partridges, wild ducks, geese and woodcocks. Fish are 
jilentiful in the streams and bayous, where bass, bar 
fish and trout are found. 

There are deposits of chalk, kaolin, fire clay, pot- 
ters' clay, iron and marl in the parish. There is some 
United States Government lands in the parish. 

Private land sells from $1.00 to $10.00 per acre. 

CAMERON PARISH. 

This parish is situated in the southwestern corner 



61 



of the State. It has a population of 3,952, and contains 
998.400 acres of land. The formation is largely coast 
marsh, with some prairie and alluvial land, the soil being 
extremely rich and highly productive. It is drained in 
part hy the Mermentau, Calcasieu and Sabine Eivers. 
Lakes Sabine, Grand and Calcasieu lie within its confines. 

The Kansas City. Watkins and Gulf Railroad passes 
through the parish. Cameron, situated at the mouth of 
Calcasieu Pass, is the parish seat. The Gulf Biologic 
Station is located at Cameron. 

Cistern water is chiefly used. The timber is cypress, 
oak and willow. The fruits are, the orange, lemon, olive, 
fig, grape, banana, guava, prunes, plums and mandarins. 

The crop productions are rice and sugar, while gar- 
don truck succeeds well. 

Game, such as wild ducks and geese, beeasine, jack 
snipe, papabot and rice birds are abundant. Fishing is 
extensive and excellent; sheepshead, red flsh, pompano, 
salt water trout, Spanish mackerel, carp, shrimp and 
crabs abound, and the oyster and diamond back terrapin 
exist in extensive quantities. 

Lands are worth from $1.00 to $2.5.00 per acre. 

CATAHOULA PARISH. 

This parish is situated near the central part of the 
State, and contains 864,000 acres of land, and has a 
population of Ki.S,?!. The formation is pine hills, wooded 
swamp, alluvial land, good upland and bluff land; the 
alluvial lands being very rich and productive, and the 
good uplands and bluff lands being of a superior quality 
and very fertile. The parish is drained by the Ouachita, 
Tensas, Black and Little Eivers, Bayous Louis. Saline 
and Castor and Gastons, Fords, Brushley, Hemp Hill and 
Funny Louis Creeks. The New Orleans and Northwestern 
Eailroad passes through the eastern portion of the parish, 



and the St. Louis, Iron Mountain and Southern Rail- 
road through its northwestern comer. Harrisonburg, 
situ.ated on the Ouachita River, is the parish seat. The 
water supply throughout the parish is abundant, and 
generally of good qualitv. There are valuable mineral 
waters at the White Sulphur Springs, the Castor Springs, 
Gaston's Creek, Harrisonburg and other points, of very 
superior qualities. There are deposits of kaolin, bauxite, 
limestone, grindstone, Ouachita honestone, flintstone, pot- 
ters' cl.ay. lignite, marl, green sand and iron. 

The timber is verv extensive and various, with pine 
in the lead; the other varieties being oak, cypress, ash, 
Cottonwood, willow, eum, elm. hickorv, locust, mulberry, 
sassafras, maple, walnut, poplar, sycamore, holly, beech, 
magnolia and persimmon. 

The fruits and nuts are, peaches, pears, pecans, ap- 
ples, plums, grapes, figs and quinces. The wild may- 
haw grows abundantlv throughout the western portions 
of the parish, and this fruit has no superior, and, in 
fact, no equal, for iellving purposes, having a peculiar 
and delicate flavor possessed bv no other fruit. A factory 
for preserving this fruit Cwhich is allowed to waste and 
rot), in the forms of iellies, would be a very p.aying in- 
vestment. The bluff lands of Sicily Island are of a 
superior qualitv. The chief crop product is cotton, while 
corn, oats, hav, sweet and Irish potatoes, tobacco, sorg- 
hum and sugar-cane yield abundantly. The live stock 
are hogs, sheep and horses; a large industry being de- 
veloped in raising hogs for shipment. 

Game is found, such as deer, bear, foxes, coons, 
opossums, squirrels, rabbits, wild txirkeys, wild ducks 
and geese, partridges, robins, rice birds and woodcocks. 
Fish are plentiful in the creeks, bayous and lakes; among 
them are found trout, bass, bar fish and white perch. 



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GfN AT BUNKIE-'DAILY CAPACITr 100 BALES COTTON 



A NOaLE PECAN TREE 




LXI 



AWAITIN- TURN" AT THE GIN 




RESIDENCE OF HON JAS. A. WARE, ON HIS SUGAR PLANTATION, BELLE GROVE, IN IBERVILLE PARISH 

I.XII 




ONION FIELD, LAFOURCHE PARISH 

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COTTON COMPRESS. LAFAYATTE. UA. 



I. XIV 



There are several thousand acres of United States 
Government lands in the parish. 

Lands arc worth from $1.00 to $20.00 per acre. 
CLAIBOENE PARISH. 

This parish is situated in the northwestern part of 
the State, and contains 497,920 acres of land, and has a 
population of 23,029. The formation is good uplands, 
red sandy clays, the soil being fertile and productive. 
It is drained by the headwaters of Bayou D'Arbonue 
and numerous small streams. 

Homer, situated near the center, is the parish seat, 
population, 1,157, and is on the line of the Louisiana and 
JStorthwestern Eailroad. This railroad runs through the 
parish north and south, and has direct connections with 
the Cotton Belt, the Vicksburg, Shreveport and Pacific, 
the Louisiana Railway and Navigation Company, and 
the Texas and Pacific Eailroads. Water is plentiful and 
of excellent quality. 

Cotton is the chief product; corn, oats, hay, peas, 
sweet and Irish potatoes, tobacco, hemp, wheat, buck- 
wheat, sugar-cane and sorghum all yield good crops. 

The fruits and nuts are, peaches, apples, pears, plums, 
pecans, quinces, pomegranates and grapes. The soil and 
climate of this parish have been found especially adapted 
to peach growing, the fruit being very highly esteemed 
on the market for both its size and flavor. 

The timber is oak, pine, poplar, hickory, beech, holly, 
elm, walnut, maple and locust. Live stock raised here 
are cattle, sheep, hogs and horses. Game is found, such 
as deer, coons, opossums, foxes, squirrels, rabbits, wild 
turkeys, partridges, woodcock and robins. 

The streams are mostly small, but fine varieties of 
fish are found in their waters, among them trout, bar 
fish, perch, and blue and spotted cat. Deposits of marl, 



green sand, potters' clay, fire clay, iron and lignite are 
found. There are a few thousand acres of United States 
Government land in the parish. Lands are worth from 
$1.00 to $15.00 per acre. 
CONCOKDIA PARISH. 

This parish is situated in the east central part of 
the State, contains 425,000 acres of land, and has a popu- 
lation of 13,559. Its formation is alluvial land and 
wooded swamp; soil highly fertile and productive. It 
is drained by the Mississippi, Tensas, Black and Ked 
Rivers. 

Vidalia, population 1,022, on the Mississippi River, 
the new Gould line, and the New Orleans and North- 
western Eailroad, is the parish seat. 

The New Orleans and Northwestern Railroad runs 
through the northeastern pai't of the parish, and there 
is also a line extending from Concordia Station to 
Trinity, on the Tensas Elver. 

The new Gould line traverses the parish north and 
south, and is now partially in operation. When completed 
this road will furnish direct communication with New 
Orleans and St. Louis. 

The timber is oak, cypress, ash, gum, elm, cotton- 
wood, hackberry, persimmon and willow. The chief crop 
product is cotton; corn, hay, oats, sweet and Irish pota- 
toes, peas, sorghum, sugar-cane and tobacco are raised. 
Live stock raised are chiefly cattle and hogs. 

The fruits and nuts are pears, peaches, pecans, 
grapes, figs, apples and plums. Game abounds, such as 
deer, bear, coons, opossums, squirrels, rabbits, wild tur- 
keys, wild ducks and geese, partridges and woodcock; 
also, rice birds. Pish are plentiful in the lakes and rivers, 
among which are bass, blue cat, white perch and pike. 

Lands are worth from $2.00 to $30.00 per acre. 



63 



DE SOTO PARISH. 

The parish of DeSoto, population 25,063, is situated 
in the northwestern part of the State, and contains 
547,840 acres of land. The formation is chiefly good up- 
lands, with a little alluvial land along the Sabine Biver 
and I5ayou Pierre. It is drained by these two streams 
and their numerous small aflluents. The soil is of good 
qualit}', fertile and productive. 

The Texas Pacific Kailroad and the Shreveport and 
Houston, Kansas City Southern Eailroads extend through 
the parish. Mansfield, situated near the center, is the 
parish seat, and has a population of 847. It is on the 
Kansas City Southern Kailroad and has a short tap line 
connecting it with the Texas and Pacific Railroad. Water 
is abundant, and of good quality. 

The chief crop product is cotton; corn, hay, oats, 
sweet and Irish potatoes, peas, sorghum, tobacco and 
sugar-cane, all thrive well. The fruits are peaches, pears, 
apples, plums, figs, pomegranates, quinces and grapes. 

The timber is chiefly pine, oak, poplar, beech, holly, 
gum, magnolia, elm, maple, locust, mulberry, hickory, 
and some walnut is found. 

Game, such as deer, coons, opossums, foxes, rabbits, 
.squirrels, wild turkeys, partridges, wild ducks, wild 
geese, woodcock and rice birds are found. Fish of vari- 
ous kinds abound in the streams and lakes. Live stock 
raised arc cattle, hogs, sheep, and some horses. Deposits 
of potters' clay, fire clay, kaolin, iron, marl and green 
sand are found; also extensive beds of lignite, producing 
a high grade coal. The commercial value of these beds 
has only been recently demonstrated, and in the opinion 
of experts, the quality and extent of the deposits promise 
to make this industry quite an important factor in the 
development of North Louisiana. There are several thou- 



sand acres of United States Government land in the 
parish. Land are worth from $1.00 to $15.00 per acre. 

EAST BATON ROUGE. 

The parish of East Baton Bouge, population 31,153, 
fronts the Mississippi Biver, one hundred and thirty 
miles above New Orleans. 

The city of Baton Bouge is the parish seat and the 
Capitol of the State; it has a population of 11,269, and 
is built on the extreme southern point of bluff land that 
touches the Mississippi Biver. 

The lands along the Mississippi Biver are alluvial, 
of which about one-third are in cultivation, the remainder 
being pasturage and woodland. The timber found here 
is principally cypress, gum, oak, and many small varie- 
ties of trees. The other portion of the parish is called 
the highlands or bluff, not subject to inundation by the 
Mississippi River. The forest growth is of great variety, 
comprising all kinds of oak, gum, magnolia, poplar and 
beech, interspersed with much undergrowth. The soil is 
as various as the forest growth, ranging from poor to 
very fertile; but under the energetic manipulation of the 
progressive farmer, will yield a rich reward to the hus- 
bandman. 

Upon these lands all the staple crops are cultivated 
successfully, viz.: cotton, cane, corn, potatoes, etc. The 
city ofBaton Rouge affords a very limited market for 
the products of the parish, the principal market being 
New Orleans and the Western cities. 

There are many small streams passing through and 
bordering on the parish, which afford sufficient drainage 
to all its lands. They are the Amite, Comite, Manehac, 
Bayou Fountain, Ward's Creek, Montesano, White's 
Bayou, Redwood, Blaekwater, Sandy Creek, and many 



64 



other minor water courses. In these streams are to be 
found many kinds of fish and water fowl. 

The health of the parish has always been regarded 
good. The military post, formerly located at Baton 
Rouge, showed the best health record of any post in the 
Southwest. The thermometer rarely rises above 90 de- 
grees, or falls below 20 degrees F., and when either ex- 
treme is reached, it lasts but a few days. The leading 
nationalities of the world are represented in the popu- 
lation, the English, French and German languages being 
spoken principally. Educational facilities are very good. 
The State University and Agricultural and Mechanical 
College is located at Baton Eouge. There is also a 
Catholic convent for girls, a Catholic college for boys, 
and several other private schools. Public schools are in 
a progressive condition. In addition to this, there are 
two State institutions that deserve notice, viz.: the In- 
stitute for the Blind and the Institution for the Deaf 
and Dumb. The State penitentiary is also located there. 
The facilities for reaching market with manufactured 
and agricultural products are unsurpassed. The parish 
lies for nearly forty miles upon the Mississippi River, 
affording daily communication with New Orleans and 
the Western cities. The Texas and Pacific Railroad 
affords communication with the Pacific States, the Yazoo 
and Mississippi Valley Railroad runs direct to Memphis 
and New Orleans, and the Louisiana Railway and Navi- 
gation Company's line gives direct communication with 
Shreveport, and will eventually be built to New Orleans, 
furnishing another line to that city, and opening up a 
new territory. 

Stock raising is successful and profitable. Lands are 
worth from $5.00 to $100.00 per acre. 



EAST CARROLL PARISH. 

East Carroll parish, population 11,373, is situated in 
the upper northeastern corner of the State, and contains 
256,000 acres of land. 

Its formation is alluvial land with some wooded 
swamp lands. Soil very fertile and productive. 

It is drained by the Mississippi River along the 
eastern, and Bayou Macon on its western borders, while 
the Tensas River and its branches drain the central por- 
tions. Lake Providence, situated on the Mississippi 
River, is the parish seat, a thriving, prosperous town of 
1,256 inhabitants, and now has railroad communication 
with the rest of the world, it being on the new Gould 
Line, which traverses the parish north and south, giving 
direct eommunioatiou to New Orleans and St. Louis. 

The timber is oak, cypress, gum, elm, hackberry, wil- 
low, Cottonwood, hickory, locust and persimmon. 

Cotton is the chief crop product, while corn, hay, 
oats, peas, sugar-cane, sweet and Irish potatoes, sorghum 
and garden varieties are raised. Rice has also been most 
successfully raised during the past season. 

The fruits and nuts are peaches, pears, pecans, apples, 
figs, grapes and pomegranates. 

Game abounds, such as deer, bear, squirrel, rabbits, 
coons, opossums, otter, mink, wild turkeys, partridges, 
rice birds, robins, wild ducks, geese and woodcock. 

Fishing in the streams is good, and white perch, 
trout and bass are found. The live stock industry en- 
gaged in embraces cattle and hogs. Land is worth from 
$3.00 to $25.00 per acre. 

EAST FELICIANA PARISH. 

This parish is situated in the southeastern part of 
the State, has a population of 20,443, and contains 298,240 



65 



acres of land. The formation is good upland, bluff land 
and pine hills; the soil being very fertile and productive. 
It is drained by the Comite and Amite Rivers, Pretty 
Creek, Redwood, Thompson 's, Beaver, Sandy and Black 
Creeks. The Yazoo and Mississippi Valley Railroad ex- 
tends through the parish, having liranch lines from 
Slaughter Station to Woodville, Miss., from Ethel Sta- 
tion to Clinton, the parish seat, and from McManus to 
Jackson, a pretty town of 2,012 inhabitants, where the 
State Insane Asylum, Centenary College, and other insti- 
tutions of learning are located. Water throughout the 
parish is abundant, and of excellent quality. The chief 
crop product is cotton, while corn, oats, hay, peas, sweet 
and Irish potatoes, sorghum, sugar-cane, tobacco, and the 
garden varieties thrive exceedingly well. The fruits and 
nuts are apples, pears, peaches, pecans, figs, plums, 
quinces, pomegranates, grapes and the smaller varieties. 

Game is plentiful, such as coons, opossums, foxes, 
rabbits, squirrels, beavers, mink, wild turkeys, wild 
ducks, woodcocks, partridges, jack snipe, robins and rice 
birds. Fish of good quality abound in the streams; trout, 
bass, bar fish, perch, and blue and speckled cat are 
found. The live stock industry is successfully conducted, 
and numbers of fine blooded cattle and horses are bred, 
while sheep and hogs thrive remarkablj- well. 

The timber is oak, beech, pine, gum, elm, poplar, 
hickory, magnolia, holly, Cottonwood, willow, cypress, 
walnut and sycamore. 

There is a small quantity of United States Govern- 
ment land in the parish. Land is worth from $2.00 to 
$20.00 per acre. 

FRANKLIN PARISH. 

Franklin parish is situated in the northeastern part 



of the State, has a population of 8.890, and contains 
392,960 acres of land. 

The formation is chiefly bluff land, with some allu- 
vial land, wooded swamp, and a little of prairie. The 
soil is very fertile and productive. It is drained by 
Boeuf River, Baj'ou Macon, Turkey and Deer Creeks, 
and Turkey Lake. 

The Xew Orleans and Northwestern Railroad passes 
through the parish. 

Winnsborough, situated on Turkey Creek, is the 
parish seat. Water is plentiful and fairly good. Cotton 
is the chief crop for export; corn, oats, hay, sugar-cane, 
sweet and Irish potatoes, peas and sorghum are produced. 
The fruits and nuts are peaches, pears, pecans, apples, 
plums, quinces, grapes, figs and pomegranates. The tim- 
ber is oak, pine, gum, elm, beech, holly, magnolia, 
hickory, poplar, cottonwood, willow, mulberry, maple, ash 
and walnut. 

The live stock are cattle, hogs, sheep and horses, of 
which large numbers are raised. 

Game abounds, such as deer, bear, foxes, coons, 
opossums, beavers, mink, squirrels, rabbits, wild turkeys, 
wild ducks and geese, partridges, snipe, woodcock and 
rice birds. 

Varieties of fish abound in the streams and lakes, 
among which are trout, bass, white perch and pike. 

There are several thousand acres of United States 
Government land. Lands are worth from $2.00 to $10.00 
per acre. 

GRANT PARISH. 

This parish is situated near the center of the State, 
has a population of 12.902, and contains 407,040 acres of 
land. The formation is pine hills, with some alluvial land 



66 













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■Tifi'-^fiir-f^*'' 



LXV 





STEAMBOAT LOADING AT SHaEVEPORT FOR NCW ORLEANS 



PALM AT THE WHITNEY RESIDENCE. NEW ORLEANS 



LWi 




A FIELD OF SUGAR CANE, hAi! BATON ROUGE. LA, 
IvXVII 












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BUILDING UEVeE ON MISSISSIPPI RIVER 
LXVIIl 



bordering Bed Eivcr. It is drained by Red and Little 
Kivers, Bayou Jatt, the Bigolet du Bon Dieii, and smaller 
streams. 

Colfax on the Louisiana Railway and Navigation 
Company's line, is the parish seat. 

The chief product is cotton, while corn, oats, hay, 
sugar-cane, sweet and Irish potatoes, sorghum, tobacco, 
and peas are raised. The fruits and nuts are peaches, 
plums, apples, pears, pecans, grapes, figs, pomegranates 
and quinces. The timber is long-leaf pihe, oak, gum, 
Cottonwood, willow, elm, hickory, and sycamore, with 
some magnolia and poplar. Live stock are raised, such 
as cattle, sheep, hogs, and horses. 

Game is found, consisting of deer, foxes, coons, 
opossums, squirrels, rabbits, mink, wild turkeys, wild 
ducks, and geese, woodcock, partridges and rice birds. 
Fish are found in the streams and lakes, the choice varie- 
ties of which are trout, bass, pike and white perch. 

Deposits of marble, limestone, kaolin, marl, lignite, 
fire clay, potters' clay, iron, and gypsum exist. There 
are several thousand acres of United States Government 
land in the parish. Lands are worth from $1.00 to $20.00 
per acre. 

IBERIA PARISH. 

This parish is situated in the southern part of the 
State, has a population of 29,015, and contains 426,880 
acres. The formation is prairie, coast marsh, alluvial 
land, wooded swamp and bluff land; the soil being very 
rich and highly productive. It is drained by Bayous 
Teche, Petit Anse and Coulee du Portage. 

The Southern Pacific Railroad, with branch lines, ex- 
tends through the parish. New Iberia, situated on Bayou 
Teche, is the parish seat. Water is good, cistern water 
being chiefly used. 



The general crop production is sugar; rice, corn, 
oats, hay, peas, sweet and Irish potatoes, and garden 
varieties are all grown extensively, and are very profit- 
able. 

The fruits and nuts are the orange, lemon, mandarin, 
fig, pomegranate, guava, olive, plum, pear, pecan, grape, 
banana, peach and prune. The timber is composed of 
cypress, oak, gum, elm, cottonwood, willow, sugarwood 
and sycamore. 

Live stock raised are horses, cattle, sheep and hogs. 
Game exists, such as deer, coons, opossums, squirrels, rab- 
bits, wild ducks, wild geese, woodcock, papabots, beca- 
sine, partridges, rice birds, snipe and pheasants. Fish 
abounds in the streams, lakes and inlets, among which 
are red fish, pompano, salt water trout, crabs, trout, bass 
and sacalait; oysters and terrapin are found in the 
brackish waters of the coast marsh. 

There are several thousand acres of United States 
Government land in the parish. Lands are worth from 
$3.00 to $50.^0 per acre. 

IBERVILLE PARISH. 

This parish is situated in the south central part of 
the State, has a population of 27,006, and contains 413,440 
acres of land. The formation is wooded swamp and allu- 
vial land, the soil of which is extremely rich and produc- 
tive. It is drained by the Mississippi River — which 
passes through the eastern portion of the parish — and 
by Grand River, Bayou Goula, Plaquemine, Maringouiu, 
Grosse Tete, Manchae, and numerous other streams. 

The Texas and Pacific Railroad passes through the 
parish on the western bank of the Mississippi River, and 
the Yazoo and Mississippi Valley Railroad through the 
eastern portion. Plaquemine, situated on the western 



67 



bank of the Mississippi, on the main line of the Texas 
ami Pacific Railroad, is the parish seat. It has a popu- 
lation of 3,590 and is a thrifty, progressive little city, 
of many industries. The famous Plaquemine Locks, at 
the mouth of Bayou Plaquemine, are located here; they 
were built by the L'nited States Government, and it is 
one of the largest pieces of masonry ever constructed in 
this country. 

Water is plentiful and good, cistern water being 
chiefly used. Sugar is the chief crop production, and 
corn, hay, oats, rice, beans, sweet and Irish potatoes, and 
the garden varieties are extensively raised. The fruits 
and nuts are pears, peaches, figs, pomegranates, oranges, 
lemons, mandarins, plums, prunes, pecans and grapes. 
Live stock are, cattle, sheep, hogs and horses. The game 
found are deer, bear, coons, opossums, mink, squirrels, 
rabbits, wild ducks and geese, snipe, becasine, partridges 
and rice birds. Fish are found in the streams, such as 
bass, pike, white perch and common varieties. Lands are 
worth from $3.00 to $50.00 per acre. 

JACKSON PARISH. 

This jiarish is situated in the north-central part of 
the State, has a population of 0,119, and contains 369,280 
acres of land. The formation is good upland and pine 
hills, red sandy clays; soil generally good and fertile. It 
is drained by the tributaries of Dugdemona River and 
Bayou Castor. Water is abundant and good. 

The Arkansas Southern Railroad runs through the 
parish from north to south. 

Vernon, situated in the northern part of the parish, 
is the parish seat, with many springs, branches and 
creeks. 

Cotton is the chief crop produced for export; corn, 



hay, oats, sorghum, sweet and Irish potatoes, peas, sugar- 
cane, wheat, rye and barley are also raised. The fruits 
are peaches, apples, pears, quinces, plums, pomegranates, 
and grapes. Cattle, hogs, sheep, and horses are raised in 
great numbers. 

Game is found, such as deer, coons, opossums, squir- 
rels, rabbits, foxes, wild turkeys, partridges, and wood- 
cock. Fish of good quality, of the smaller varieties, are 
found in streams. 

The timber consists of pine, oak, beech, hickory, 
walnut, elm, and maple. Extensive areas of long leaf 
pine are in this parish. There are several thousand acres 
of United States Government land in the pari.sh. Land 
is worth from $1.00 to $5.00 per acre. 

JEFFERSON PARISH. 

Tliis parish is situated in the southeastern part of 
the State, and is divided by the Mississippi River, which 
passes its northern portion. It has a population of 15,321 
and contains 385,920 acres, the formation being com- 
posed largely of coast marsh, while it has a large area 
of alluvial land and some wooded swamp. The soil is 
exceedingly rich and productive. It is drained by the 
Mississippi River, Lake Pontchartrain and Bayous Bara- 
taria, Rigolet, Des Families or Dauphine, St. Dennis, 
Dupont and Grand Ba3'ou. 

The Texas Pacific, Southern Pacific. Gulf and Grand 
Isle, Illinois Central, and Yazoo and Mississippi Valley 
Railroads pass through the parish. 

Gretna, situated on the Mississippi River is the 
parish seat. Water is good, cistern water being chiefly 
used. 

Sugar is the principal crop produced, although rice, 
jute, corn, Irish potatoes, onions and garden truck of 



68 



all kinds are extensively grown, and shipped to northern 
markets. 

The fruits and nuts are oranges, lemons, mandarins, 
figs, pomegranates, plums, prunes, peciins, guavas, olives, 
bananas and grapes. Some oattle and hogs are raised. 

Game is found, consisting of snipe, becasine, papa- 
bots, wild ducks and geese, and rice birds and coons, 
rabbits and opossums. 

The timber is limited to cypress, oak, elm and willow. 

Fish abound, and the oyster industry of this parish 
is the most extensive, and superior along the Gulf Coast. 
Terrapin, oysters, crabs, and the varieties of Gulf fish 
are taken in large numbers in the inlets, bayo-is and 
lakes. There is some United States Goverument land in 
the parish. Lands are worth from $1.00 to $50.00 per 
acre. 

LAFAYETTE PARISH. 

This parish is situated in the southern part of the 
State, population 22,825, and contains 152,960 acres of 
land, in area it being the third smallest parish iu the 
State. Its formation is chiefly prairie, with considerable 
alluvial and bluff land. The soil is very fertile and pro- 
ductive. It is drained by bayous Carencro and Tortue 
and Vermillion Elvers. 

The Southern Pacific Railroad extends througn the 
parish, having a connecting line from Lafayette to 
Cheneyville, in Rapides parish. Lafayette, situated on 
the Southern Pacific Railroad, is the parish seat, has a 
population of 3,314, and is the home of the Southwestern 
Industrial Institute. It is only a few miles from the 
Anse La Butte Oil field, which lies almost on the line 
of Lafayette and St. Martin parishes. 

Water is abundant, and of good quality. Eice and 



sugar are the chief productions, and corn, cotton, oats, 
sweet and Irish potatoes, peas and hay, are extensively 
raised. 

The fruits and nuts are the orange, pear, grape, plum, 
peach and pecan. Cattle, sheep, hogs and horses are 
raised extensively. Game, such as snipe, becasine, 
plovers, wild ducks, partridges, pheasants and rice birds 
are found. Some fish are taken from the streams of the 
parish. The timber is oak, willow, Cottonwood, elm, 
some cypress, sugarwood, gum and sycamore. Lands are 
worth from $5.00 to $30.00 per acre. 

LAFOURCHE PARISH. 

This parish is situated in the southern part of the 
State, and contains 655,260 acres of land, and has a popu- 
lation of 28,822. The formation is alluvial land, wooded 
swamp and coast marsh. Soil exceedingly rich and pro- 
ductive. It is drained by bayous Lafourche, Des Alle- 
mam q and Grand Bayou. 

The Southern Pacific Railroad passes through the 
northern portion of the parish, and the Texas & Pacific 
runs from Thibodaux north. Thibodaux, situated on 
bayou Lafourche, is the parish seat, with a population of 
3,253, and is a thrifty, progressive little city, with elec- 
tric lights, waterworks, foundries, canning factory and 
many other industries. Water is good, cistern water 
being generally used. Sugar is the chief product, and 
rice, corn, hay, oats, peas, jute and garden truck are 
grown and shipped. 

The fruits and nuts are oranges, lemons, mandarins, 
plums, guavas, olives, figs, pears, grapes, peaches, pecans 
and bananas. The live stock raised here are mostly 
cattle and hogs. Game is found, such as snipe, becasine, 
wild ducks and geese, deer, rice birds, papabots, squir- 



69 



rels, opossums, coons and rabbits. Fishing is very good, 
and oysters, crabs, terrapin and the Gulf fish are found 
in waters of the coast marsh. The timber is cypress, 
oak, Cottonwood, gum, elm and willow. Land is worth 
from $5.00 to $30.00 per acre. 

LINCOLN PARISH. 

This parish is situated in the northern part of the 
State, and contains 368„000 acres of land, and has a 
population of 15,898. The formation is good upland, red 
sandy clay, the soil being fertile and productive. It is 
drained by Bayou D'Arbonne, and smaller streams. 
Many chalybeate springs, creeks and branches abound. 

The Vicksburg, Shreveport and Pacific Railroad 
passes through the parish, and a north and south line is 
now building through the parish. Ruston, situated on 
this line, is the parish seat. It is a thriving, progressive 
little city with a population of 1324. Here is situated 
the State Industrial Institute for both sexes. Over 600 
pupils now in attendance. Tuition free. Here is also 
located the Louisiana Chautauqua. Ruston has a cotton 
compress, cotton oil mill, ice factory, fertilizer factory 
and electric light plant. This is one of the best hill or 
upland parishes in the State. Water is sufficient, and 
of good quality, from cool springs and wells. 

The chief product is cotton; corn, oats, hay, sorghum, 
grasses, wheat, sugar-cane, tobacco, sweet and Irish pota- 
toes, and peas, being also extensively raised. The fruits 
and nuts are peaches, pears, plums, perans, apples, 
quinces, grapes, and all do well. Cattle, hogs, sheep, 
horses and mules are raised on farms. 

Game is found, consisting 'of deer, coons, foxes, 
opossums, squirrels, rabbits, wild turkeys, wild ducks, 
woodcock, partridges and robins. Deposits of marl, pot- 



ters' clay, fire clay and lignite are found. The timber 
is pine, oak, poplar, hickory, beech, maple, gum, elm, 
walnut and persimmon. 

There are several thousand acres of United States 
Government land in the parish. Lands are worth from 
$2.00 to $20.00 per acre. 

LIVINGSTON PARISH. 

This parish is situated in the southeastern part of 
the State, and contains 379,520 acres of land, and has a 
population of 8,100. The formation is bluff land, pine 
Hats, alluvial land and wooded swamps; the soil being 
generally fertile and productive, some of which is ex- 
ceedingly rich. It is drained by the Amite and Tickfaw 
Rivers and Colyell Creek, and their branches. Water is 
abundant and of good quality. Springfield, on the Tick- 
faw River, is the parish seat. 

Cotton is the chief crop product; corn, hay, oats, 
sorghum, sugar-cane, sweet and Irish potatoes, peas, 
tobacco and rice are raised. The fruits and nuts are, 
peaches, plums, pears, pecans, apples, grapes, figs, pome- 
granates and quinces. Cattle, sheep, hogs and horses 
are raised. 

The timber is pine, oak, beech, magnolia, ash, holly, 
guiai hickor}', poplar, persimmon and cypress. 

Game is abundant, such as deer, coons, opossums, 
squirrels, rabbits, wild turkeys, wild ducks, partridges, 
woodcock and robins. Fish are found in the rivers and 
streams, such as trout, bass, channel catfish and perch. 

Lands are worth from $1.50 to $15.00 per acre. 

MADISON PARISH. 

This parish is situated in the northeastern part of 
the State, population 12,332, and contains 437,760 acres 



70 





I,XIX 








m ii^'^^' 



tV. 



'~Ji 



PLANTATION HOME, PARISH OF CAST FELICIANA. LA, 




AN AVENUE OF LIVE OAKS IN AUDUBON PARK, NEW ORLEANS 

LXXI 





.,,:ft|\,V":;.'j^^^S^^^ 



1!^ 




FRtE TRAFFIC BRIDGE OVER THE OUACHITA. MONROE. 



COURT HOUSE AND ANNEX. MONROE. LA 





• • • ♦ ■ • 



U S POST OFFICE, MONROE. LA. 



LXXII 



PARISH HIGH SCHOOL, MONROE. LA 



of land. The formation is alluvial land and wooded 
swamp; tbe soil is very fertile and productive. It is 
drained by the Mississippi and Tensas Elvers, Bayous 
Macon, Vidal, Roundaway and Walnut. The Vicksburg, 
Shreveport and Pacific Railroad passes through the 
parish, east and west, and the new Gould line north and 
south. Tallulah, situated on these lines, is the parish 
seat. 

Water is good, cistern water being in general use. 
Cotton is the chief crop product; corn, hay, oats, sugar- 
cane, sweet and Irish potatoes, peas, and sorghum, are 
successfully raised. The fruits and nuts are, peaches, 
pecans, pears, apples, plums, pomegranates, figs, and 
grapes. The timber is oak, gum, cypress, cottonwood, 
willow, hackberry, mulberry, locust, elm, and persimmon. 

The live stock raised are cattle, hogs, sheep and 
horses. Game abounds, such as deer, bear, coons, opos- 
sums, squirrels, rabbits, wild turkeys, wild ducks and 
geese, robins, rice birds, woodcock and partridges. There 
is good fishing in the streams and lakes. Bass, trout 
and white perch are found in these waters. 

Land is worth from $5.00 to $30.00 per acre. 

MOREHOUSE PARISH. 

This parish is situated in the northeastern part of 
the State, and contains 486,400 acres of land, and has a 
population of l(i,634. 

The formation is a,lluvial land, good upland and 
wooded swamp; soil rich and productive. It is drained 
by the Ouachita and Boeuf Rivers, and Bayous Bonne 
Idee, Bartholomew and Gallion. Water is abundant and 
of good quality. The Vicksburg, Shreveport and Pacific 
Railroad passes through the extreme southern point; the 
Iron Mountain Railroad passes through the parish, north 



and south, while the New Orleans and Northwestern 
Railroad passes through from southeast to northwest. 

Bastrop is the parish seat, located on the uplands. 
Cotton is the principal crop production for export; corn, 
oats, hay, tobacco, sweet and Irish potatoes, peas, sorg- 
hum and sugar-cane are also raised. The fruits an<l 
nuts are, peaches, pears, pecans, apples, plums, quinces 
and grapes. The timber is oak, pine, cottonwood, gum, 
elm, cypress, poplar, hickory, holly, beech, magnolia, wil- 
low and persimmon. Live stock, such as cattle, hogs, 
sheep and some horses are raised. 

Game is found, consisting of deer, coons, foxes, 
opossums, squirrels, rabbits, wild turkeys, wild ducks, 
woodcock, snipe, robins, partridges and rice birds. Fish 
of good quality are found in the streams. 

There are several thousand acres of United States 
Government land in the parish. Lands are worth from 
$2.00 to $20.00 per acre. 

NATCHITOCHES PARISH. 

Natchitoches parish is situated in the west-central 
part of the State, has a population of 33,216, and con- 
tains 825,600 acres of land. The formation is alluvial 
land, good upland and pine flats; soil generally good, 
and very productive. It is drained by Red and Cane 
Rivers, and Bayous Saline, Pierre and Natchez and the 
Rigolet Du Bon Dieu. Water is abundant, and of good 
quality. 

The main line of the Texas and Pacific Railroad 
runs through the parish, with branch line to the Red 
River through the town of Natchitoches; this town is 
also the terminus of the Louisiana and Northwestern 
Railroad, and has a branch line of the Louisiana Rail- 
way and Navigation Company. It is the parish seat, 



71 



and a thrift}', progressive town of 2,388 inhabitants. 
Here is located the State Normal School, with over 700 
students. 

Cotton is the chief crop raised for export, while corn, 
oats, tobacco, hay, peas, sorghum, sugar-cane and sweet 
and Irish potatoes are produced. The Natchitoches 
tobacco enjoys world-wide reputation. 

The fruits are peaches, pears, apples, plums, quinces, 
pomegranates, figs and grapes. The tind^er is pine, oak, 
gum, Cottonwood, elm, willow, cypress, holly, i agnolia, 
hickory, walnut, poplar, maple and persimmon. Cattle, 
sliccii, hogs and horses are raised. 

(iame, such as deer, coons, foxes, opossums, rabbits, 
squirrels, wild turke3's and ducks, woodcock, partridges 
and rice birds, is found. Fish of good quality are found 
in the streams. Deposits of lignite, marl, marble, lime- 
stone, kaolin, iron, fire clay and potters' clay exist. 
Tnililcs are also found in this parish. 

There are several thousand acres of United States 
Government lands in the parish. Land is worth from 
$2.00 to $25.00 per acre. 

ORLEANS PARISH. 

'I'liis parish is situated in the southeastern part of 
the State, has a population of 287,104, and contains 
127,:!()0 acres; it being the smallest parish in area in the 
Stall'. The formation is alluvial land, coast marshes and 
wooilerl swamp. It is drained by the Mississippi River, 
bakes Pontchartrain and Borgne, and Bayous St. John 
iirid Centilly. Most of the railroads of the State con- 
verge- hero ill the City of New Orleans, which is the 
parish seat. 

The chief crops grown are garden truck, an immense 
industry; and corn, sugar-cane, rice, jute, sweet and Irish 



potatoes are raised. The fruits are the orange, lemon, 
mandarin, olive, prune, grape, fig, pomegranate, pear, 
peach, and the smaller varieties. The timber is cypress, 
oak, gum, elm, hackberry, Cottonwood and willow. Some 
cattle, hogs aud horses are raised here. Very little game 
is found, though fishing is very good in the lakes and 
brackish waters, where oysters, crabs, terrapin, and the 
varieties of Gulf fish are taken. 

The City of New Orleans and the Parish of Orleans 
are practically one and the same thing, as the city now 
embraces within its limits all of the parish. 

OUACHITA PARISH. 

This parish is situated in the northern portion of 
the State, has a population of 20,947, and contains 409,600 
acres of land. The formation is good upland, alluvial 
land and wooded swamp; soil good and productive. It 
is drained by the Ouachita River, and Bayous Boeuf and 
Lafourche. Many small creeks and branches exist. 
Water is abundant and good, from springs and wells in 
upland sections. 

The Vicksburg, Shreveport and Pacific, and the Iron 
Mountain E.'iilrinuls run through the parish, east and 
west, and north and south. The Little Rock and Monroe 
runs through the parisli, nortli and south, north of 
Monroe. 

Monroe, situated on the Ouachita River is the parish 
seat, and has a population of 5,428. It is a thriving, pro- 
gressive city, and has a cotton factory, railroad shops, 
electric light and waterworks. 

Cotton is the chief crop product for export; corn, 
oats, hay, sugar-cane, sorghum, tobacco, sweet and Irish 
potatoes, peas and garden truck are extensively raised, 
and now shipped to Northern markets. The fruits and 



78 



nuts are peaches, pears, pecans, plums apples, figs, pome- 
granates, grapes, quinces, and the smaller varieties. 

The timber is oak, gum, Cottonwood, willow, cypress, 
beech, holly, magnolia, poplar, persimmon and hickory. 

Live stock raising embraces cattle, sheep, hogs and 
horses, and is extensively practiced. Game consists of 
deer, wild turkeys, partridges, wild ducks and geese, 
robins, woodcock, coons, opossums, rabbits and squirrels. 
Fishing is good in the streams and lakes; bass, trout 
and other fish are taken. 

There are several thousand acres of United States 
Government land in the parish. Land is worth from 
$2.00 to $50.00 per acre. 

PLAQUEMINES PARISH. 

This parish is situated in the southeastern part of 
the State, has a population of 13,039, and is divided by 
the Mississippi River, which passes through it. The 
formation is alluvial land and coast marsh; the soil 
being exceedingly rich and productive. 

It is drained by the Mississippi Eiver and Bayous 
Cheniere, Wilkinson, Long, Terre au Boeuf, Vacherie, 
Dupont and Grand Bayou. The Grand Isle and Gulf 
Railroad passes down the western coast of the Missis- 
sippi, and the Mississippi, Terre au Boeuf and Lake 
Road down the eastern coast. 

Pointe-a-la-Hache, situated on the Mississippi River, 
is the parish seat. Cistern water is mostly used. The 
chief crop productions are sugar and rice; corn, jute 
and truck varieties are grown and shipped extensively. 

Fruits are oranges, lemons, mandarins, olives, 
bananas, figs, guavas, grapes and prunes. The finest 
orange groves and lands in the State are here. 

Timber is cypress, willow, elm, oak and Cottonwood. 



Some cattle are raised, and a few hogs. Game is beca- 
sine, snipe, rice birds, wild ducks, geese and swan, papa- 
bots, coon and opossums. 

Fishing is excellent, and crab, sheepshead, pompano, 
red fish, flounder, salt water trout, Spanish mackerel, 
oysters, terrapin and shrimp abound. The oyster industry 
is quite extensive in this parish. 

There are several thousand acres of United States 
Government land in the parish. 

Land is worth from $1.00 to $100.00 per acre. 

POINTS COUPEE PARISH. 

This parish is situated in the east-central jjart of 
the State, has a population of 25,777, and contains 308,000 
acres of land. The formation is alluvial land and wooded 
swamp; one of the richest in the State. It is drained 
by the Mississippi, Atchafalaya and False Rivers, and 
Bayous Letsworth, Latenache, Fordoche, Portage and 
Poydras. Water is abundant throughout the parish. New 
Roads is the parish seat, and is a thrifty, progressive 
town of 700 inhabitants. The Texas and Pacific has a 
branch line running through the parish, north and south. 
This branch line, as soon as a bridge across Red River 
is completed, will become a part of the new Gould line 
from New Orleans to St. Louis. 

Sugar and cotton are the chief crop products, and 
corn, oats, peas, hay, sweet and Irish potatoes, rice, 
tobacco and garden truck are raised. The fruits and 
nuts are pears, peaches, plums, pecans, apples, figs, pome- 
granates and grapes. The timber is cypress, oak, ash, 
elm, hackberry, willow, Cottonwood, magnolia and per- 
simmon. 

Live stock are cattle, hogs and horses. Game is 
found, consisting of deer, bear, coons, opossums, rabbits, 



73 



squirrels, wild turkeys, ducks and geese, partridges, beea- 
sine, rice birds and woodcock. Fishing is very good in 
the lakes and streams; bass, trout, white perch and pike 
are taken. Lands are worth from $3.00 to $40.00 per 
acre. 

EAPIDES PARISH. 

Rapides is the central parish of the State, has a 
population of 39,578, and contains 975,440 acres of land. 
The formation is pine flats and alluvial land, with some 
bluff land and prairie. In the alluvial, bluff and prairie 
sections the soil is very fertile and productive, the 
chocolate formation being very rich. It is drained by 
Red and Calcasieu Rivers, and Bayous Saline, Rapides, 
Boeuf, Flacon and Cocodrie. 

The Texas and Pacific, the Kansas City, Watkins 
and Gulf, the Louisiana Railway and Navigation Com- 
pany, the Iron Mountain and the Southern Pacific Rail- 
roads pass through the parish, all centering at Alexan- 
dria, which is the parish seat, and has a population of 
5,648. 

Cotton and sugar are the chief crop productions for 
export; corn, oats, hay, peas, sweet and Irish potatoes, 
rice, tobacco and garden truck are produced. The fruits 
and nuts are, peaches, pears, plums, pecans, figs, pome- 
granates, grapes, apples, and the smaller varieties. The 
wild May-haw grows abundantly throughout the parish; 
this fruit has no superior for jellying purposes. The 
timber is pine, oak, cypress, Cottonwood, hickory, willow, 
locust, sycamore and gum; large areas of long-leaf pine. 

Cattle, sheep, hogs and horses are raised. Game is 
found, consisting of squirrels, rabbits, coons, opossums, 
foxes, deer, wild turkeys, wild ducks, snipe, woodcock, 
partridges and rice birds. Fishing is good in the streams. 



There are several thousand acres of United States 
Government lands in the parish. Land is worth from 
$3.00 to $r,0.00 per acre. 

RED RIVER PARISH. 

This parish is situated in the northwestern part of 
the State, has a population of 11,548, and contains 250,000 
acre" of land. The formation is good upland and allu- 
vial land, the soil being rich and productive. It is 
d'.ained by Red River and Grand and Blacklake Bayous. 
Water is plentiful and generally good. 

The Louisiana Railway and Navigation Company's 
line traverses the parish along the east bank of Red 
River. Coushatta, situated on the Red River, with a 
population of 6U0, is the parish seat. 

Cotton is the chief product; sugar-cane and alfalfa, 
corn, oats, hay, peas, sweet and Irish potatoes, and the 
garden varieties all yield good returns. The fruits and 
nuts are, peaches, pears, pecans, plums, apples, pome- 
granates, grapes, quinces and figs. The timber is oak, 
pine, cypress, gum, elm, beech, maple, holly, cottonwnod, 
sycamore, poplar^ hickory, willow and persimmon. 

The live stock raised are cattle, hogs and sheep. 
Game is abundant, such as squirrels, coons, opossums, 
rabbits, deer, wild turkeys, partridges, robins, wild 
ducks and woodcock. Fish are found in the streams, 
among which are the trout, bass, pike and bar fish. 

There arc several thousand acres of United States 
Government land in the parish. Lands are worth from 
$2.00 to $40.00 per acre. 

RICHLAND PARISH. 

This j>arisli is situated in llu> northLastern part of 
the State, has a population of 11,116, and contains 369,920 



74 











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CITY HIOH SCHOOL, MONROE, LA. 
LXXIII 



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RAPIDES COURT HOUSE, ALEXANDRIA, LA. 
LXXIV 








CONVENT, COVINGTON. LA. 



A SAMPLE OF STRAWBERRIES 




COURT HOUSE AND JAIL. TANGIPAHOA PARISH 



LXXV 





FIRST STREET. AMITE CITT. LA.. IN OCTOBER 



ABITA SPRINGS MOTEL 



J. XX VI 



acres of land. The formation is bluff land, alluvial land, 
and a little wooded swamp; soil fertile and productive. ' 
It is drained by Boeuf River and Bayous Macon, La- 
fourche and Big Creek. Water is abundant and gener- 
ally good. 

The Vicksburg, Shreveport and Pacific, and the New 
Orleans and Northwestern Railroads pass through the 
parish. Rayville, situated on these lines of railroad, is 
the parish seat. 

Cotton is the chief crop produced for export; corn, 
oats, hay, sorghum, peas, sweet and Irish potatoes and 
garden varieties are grown. The fruits and nuts are, 
peaches, apples, pears, pecans, plums, grapes, figs, pome- 
granates and quinces. 

Live stock raised are mostly cattle and hogs. Game 
is found, consistinsT of deer, bear, coons, opossums, rab- 
bits, squirrels, wild turkeys, wild ducks, partridges, rice 
birds, woodcock and snipe. Fish of good quality are 
abundant in the streams and lakes. 

The timber is, oak, gum, cypress, Cottonwood, willow, 
hickory, poplar and persimmon. 

Lands are worth from $2.00 to $2.5.00 per acre. 

SABINE PARISH. 

This parish is situated in the western part of the 
State, has a populaton of 1.5,421, and contains 645,120 
acres of land. The formation is good upland, pine flats, 
and a small area of allvuial land extending along the 
Sabine River; soil is srenerally good and productive. It 
is drained by the Sabine River and Bayous St. Patrice, 
San Miguel, Lonnan, Negroet and Toreau. 

The Texas and Pacific Railroad passes through its 
northeastern corner, and the Kansas City Southern and 
Gulf passes through, north and south. Many, situated 



on Hampton Bayou and the latter railway, is the parish 
seat. Water is plentiful and of good quality. 

Cotton is the principal crop product for export; corn, 
hay, oats, sorghum, beans, sweet and Irish potatoes, and 
the garden and truck varieties are raised. The fruits 
are, peaches, apples, pears, plums, quinces, figs, pome- 
granates and grapes. 

Live stock raised are cattle, sheep, hogs and horses; 
an important business in the parish. 

Game is plentiful, consisting of deer, coons, foxes, 
opossums, beaver, rabbits, wild turkeys, snipe, partridges, 
robins, rice birds, woodcock and wild ducks. 

The timber is, pine (chiefly long-leaf and short), 
with oak, gum, elm, maple, walnut, poplar, sycamore and 
hickory. Deposits of lignite, marble, limestone, potters' 
clay. Fullers earth, fire clay, gypsum and marl exist. 

There are several thousand acres of United States 
Government lands in the parish. Lands are worth from 
$2.00 to $15.00 per acre. 

ST. BERNARD PARISH. 

This parish is situated in the extreme southeastern 
part of the State, has a population of 5,0.31, and contains 
435,205 acres. The formation is coast marsh and alluvial 
land. It is drained by the Mississippi River, Lake 
Borgne, and Bayous Terro au Boeuf, Loutre and Biloxi. 

The Mississippi, Tcrre au Boeuf and Lake Railroad, 
having a line extending to Shell Beach, on Lake Borgne, 
passes through the parish. St. Bernard, situated on the 
Mississippi River, is the parish seat. The parish adjoing 
Orleans. 

Sugar is the chief crop product; but rice, jute and 
the garden and truck varieties are extensively raised 
and shipped. The fruts and nuts are, oranges, lemons, 



75 



iniiiidaiins, figs, pecans, bananas, grapes, guavas, olives 
ami prunes. Some few cattle and hogs are raised here, 
(ianu! consists of becasine, snipe, rice birds, papabots, 
wild ducks, coons, opossums, squirrels, rabbits and deer. 
Fish of fine quality are plentiful; oysters, crabs and 
terrapin are also found. The timber is oak, cypress, 
willow, elm, pine and gum. 

There is a small quantity of United States Govern- 
ment land in the parish, and a very large area of Levee 
Board lands. Lands are worth from $1.00 to $60.00 per 
acre. 

ST. CHARLES PARISH. 

This parish is situated in the southeastern part of 
the State, has a population of 9,072, and is divided by 
the Mississippi River, which passes through its northern 
portion. It contains 251,.520 acres, the formation being 
coast marsh and alluvial land, with a little wooded 
swamp. The soil is very fertile and productive. It is 
drained by the Mississippi River, Bayou L)es Allemands, 
and Lakes Pontchartrain and Washa, or Quasha, 
Barataria. 

The Illinois Central, the Yazoo and Mississippi Val- 
ley, the Texas and Pacific, and the Southern Pacific Rail- 
roads pass through the parish. Hahnvilie, situated on 
the west coast of the Mississippi River, is the parish 
site. Drinking water is good, consisting chiefly of cistern 
water. 

Sugar is the chief crop product; rice, corn, Irish 
and sweet potatoes, jute, peas and garden truck are ex- 
tensively grown and shipped. The fruits are, the orange, 
fig. grape, lemon, mandarin, prune, guava, plum, olive 
and iicmiegranate. 

Cattle and hogs are raised on a limited scale. Game 



consists of becasine, snipe, rice birds, wild ducks, swan, 
squirrels, coons, opossums, rabbits and deer. Pishing is 
good in the lakes and bayous. 

The timber is, oak, cypress, Cottonwood, gum, pecan 
and willow. There is little, if any public land within 
the parish. Laud is worth from $10.00 to $50.00 per 
acre. 

ST. HELENA PARISH. 

This parish is situated in the southeastern part of 
the State, has a population of 8,479, and contains 264,320 
acres of land. The formation is pine hills, flats, and 
bluff land; soil fertile and productive. It is drained by 
the Amite and Tickfaw Rivers and their branches. Water 
is aljundant and of good quality. 

A logging steam tramroad connects Greensljurg, the 
parish seat, with the main line of the Illinois Central 
Railroad. 

Cotton is tlie chief crop production; corn, oats, hay, 
peas, sweet and Irish potatoes, sorghum, tobacco and 
sugar-cane are raised. The fruits and nuts are, pears, 
grapes, plums, pecans, apples, peaches, quinces and the 
smaller varieties. Live stock are, cattle, sheep, hogs and 
horses. 

The timber is, pine, oak, beech, magnolia, holly, gum, 
hickory, jioplar and persimmon. Long-leaf pine is ex- 
tensive, (lame is found, such as deer, coons, opossums, 
foxes, squirrels, rabbits, wild turkeys, wild ducks, part- 
ridges, woodcock and robins. Fish are found in the 
rivers and other streams, the Tickfaw being noted for 
its fine quality and quantity of trout. 

There are several thousand acres of United States 
Government land in the parish. Lands are worth from 
$1.50 to $15.00 per acre. 



76 



ST. JAMES PARISH. 

This parish is situated in the southeastern part of 
the State, has a population of 20,197, and is divided by 
the Mississippi River. It contains 219,520 acres of land, 
the soil being very fertile and productive. The forma- 
tion is alluvial land, wooded swamp, and a little coast 
marsh. It is drained bj' the Mississippi River, Bayou 
Des Acadiens, and several small bayous. Water is plen- 
tiful and good. 

The Yazoo and Mississippi Valley and the Texas and 
Pacific Railroads pass through the parish. Convent, 
situated on the east bank of the Mississippi River, is 
the parish seat. Sugar is the chief crop product; rice, 
corn, tobacco, hay, oats, beans and sweet and Irish pota- 
toes are raised. The famous Perique tobacco is almost 
exclusively raised in this parish. Figs, oranges, lemons, 
mandarins, guavas, plums, peaches, pears, pecans, grapes 
and pomegranates are grown. 

Game consists of becasine, snipe, rice birds, squir- 
rels, coons, opossums, rabbits, and some few deer and 
bear. Fish are found in the bayous and lagoons, of good 
quality, among them bass and pike. 

The timber is, cypress, oak, gum, elm, willow and 
Cottonwood. Lands are worth from .$10.00 to $40.00 per 
acre. 
ST. JOHN THE BAPTIST PARISH. 

This parish is situated in the southeastern part of 
the State, has a population of 12,.330, and is divided by 
the Mississippi River. It contains 147,200 acres, and the 
formation is alluvial land, wooded swamp and coast 
marsh. The soil is rich and productive. It is drained 
by the Mississippi River and Lakes Pontchartrain, 
Maurepas and Des Allemands. Water is abundant and 
fairly good. 



The Yazoo and Mississippi Valley, the Illinois Cen- 
tral, and the Texas and Pacific Railroads extend through 
the parish. Edgard, situated on the west bank of the 
Mississippi River, is the parish seat. 

Sugar is the chief product; rice, oats, corn, hay, 
sweet and Irish potatoes, peas and jute are also pro- 
duced. Oranges, figs, grapes, plums, pecans, guavas and 
pomegranates are grown. Some few cattle and hogs are 
raised. 

Game consists of squirrels, coons, opossums, rabbits, 
wild ducks, becasine, snipe and rice birds; some few 
deer and bear are found. Fish, of good quality, abound 
in the lakes and bayous. 

The timber is cypress, oak, gum, elm, Cottonwood 
and willow. Land is worth from $10.00 to $40.00 per 
acre. 

ST. LANDRY PARISH. 

St. Landry is situated in the south-central part of 
the State, has a population of 52,906 and contains 
1,077,120 acres of land. The formation is prairie, alluvial 
land, pine flats, wooded swamp, and bluff land. The soil 
is very fertile and productive. It is drained by the 
.4tchafalaya River, and Bayous Rouge, Courtableu, 
Teche, Boeuf, Cocodric and Nezpique. Water is plen- 
tiful and of good quality. 

The Texas and Pacific Railroad passes through the 
northeastern portion, and the branch road of the 
Southern Pacific, extending from Lafayette to Cheney- 
ville, runs through the parish. Opelousas, situated on 
Bellevue Bavou, is the parish seat, and has a population 
of 2,951. 

Cotton, rice and sugar are the chief crops produced 
for export: and corn, oats, hay, sweet and Irish potatoe-s, 
beans, sorghum and the garden varieties and truck are 



77 



extensively raised. The fruits are, peaches, pears, plums, 
apples, grapes, quinces, figs, pomegranates, persimmons 
and the smaller varieties. 

Live stock is extensively raised; sheep, cattle, horses, 
and hogs, all do remarkably well here an('. are a very 
profitable investment. Game is found, consisting of 
squirrels, opossums, rabbits, beavers, deer, wild turkeys, 
wild ducks and geese, woodcock, becasine, partridges, 
pheasants, snipe and rice birds. Fish abound in the 
streams, such as bass, trout and pike. The timber em- 
braces pine, oak, beech, magnolia, holly, gum, elm, per- 
simmon, hickory, pecan, walnut, willow and sycamore. 
There are several thousand acres of United States Gov- 
ernment land in the parish. Lands are worth from $2.50 
to ifi.'iO.ort per acrp. 

ST. MARTIN PARISH. 

This parish is situated in the southern part of the 
Stiite, has a population of 18,910, and contains 395,520 
acres. The formation is wooded swamp, prairie, alluvial 
land, and a small area of bluff land; soil fertile and pro- 
ductive. Tt is drained by the Atchafalaya River, Bayous 
Teche, Tortue, La Rose, L'Embarras and Catahoula 
Coulee. 

St. Martinsville, situated on the Teche, is the parish 
seat, and is connected with the Southern Pacific Rail- 
road at Cade Station. Sugar is the chief crop produc- 
tion; rice, corn, oats, hay, sweet and Irish potatoes, 
tobacco, cotton, and the garden varieties are also grown. 

The fruits are, oranges, lemons, mandarins, guavas, 
grapes, plums, prunes, pomegranates, peaches, pears, figs, 
apples, persimmons and quinces. 

Cattle, sheep, hogs and horses are raised. Game, 
such as partridges, rice birds, pheasants, wild turkeys, 
squirrels, rabbits, coons, opossums, deer and bear are 



found. Fish are plentiful in the bayous, lakes and 
lagoons. 

The Anso la Butte oil field lies just within the 
borders of this parish. Good results have already been 
obtained in this field, and much greater ones are expected 
when it is fully developed. 

The timber embraces cypress, oak, g<ira, elm, willow, 
Cottonwood, sugarwood and sycamore. Land is worth 
from $.^.00 to $50.00 per acre. 

ST. MARY PARISH. 

This parish is situated in the southern part of the 
State, has a population of 34,145, and contains 414,720 
acres. Its formation is coast marsh, alluvial land, 
prairie, wooded swamp, and a small amount of bluff 
land. The soil is exceedingly rich and productive. It 
is drained by the Atchafalaya River, Grand Lake, and 
Bayous Teche, Sale and Cypremort. The Southern Pacific 
Railroad extends through the parish. Franklin, situated 
on the Teche, is the parish seat. Water is plentiful and 
good. 

Sugar is the chief crop product; rice, corn, oats, 
hny. peas, sweet and Irish potatoes, and garden varieties 
are extensively raised. This is one of the best sugar 
parishes in the State. The fruits and nuts are, the orange, 
lemon, mandarin, fig, grape, persimmon, pomegranate, 
guava, plum, peach, pear, pecan, olive, banana and prune. 

Cattle, hogs and some horses are raised. Game con- 
sists of snipe, becasine, pheasants, rice birds, partridges, 
squirrels, rabbits, coons, opossums and deer. Fish are 
plentiful in the bayous, lakes, lagoons und inlets, and 
ovsters, crabs and terrapin are taken in the brackish 
writers. The timber is, cypress, oak, cottonwood, gum, 
elm and willow.- Lands are worth from $10.00 to $50.00 
per acre. 



78 




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MOUNT CARMEU CONVENT 



STATE DEAF AND DUMB ASYLUM, BATON ROUGE 





U- S. S ATLANTA ASCENDING THE MISSISSIPPI 



LXXVJI 



SUGAR REFINERY AT NEW ORLEANS 




TULANE UNIVERSITY. NEW ORLEANS. LA. 
I.XXVIII 



■ 1 ' ' ^ 




THE MOUNT LEBANON UNIVERSITY. ESTABLISHED 
OVE« FIFTY YEARS AGO 




HIGH 5CHCOL AT MIND:: 




SILLIMAN FEMALE COLLEGIATE INSTITUTE. CLINTON 




THE OLD AND THE NEW IN THE PUBLIC SCHOOL SYSTEM 
OF LAFAYETTE PARISH 



LXXIX 





LXXX 



ST. TAMMANY PARISH. 

This parish is situated in the southeastern part of 
the State, has a population of 13,335, and contains 590,720 
acres of land. The formation is pine hills, pine flats, 
alluvial land and wooded swamp; soil fertile and pro- 
ductive. It is drained by Pearl Kiver, West Pearl, 
Chefuncta (or Tchefuncta) Eiver, and Bogue Chitto, 
Bogue Falia and other streams. The New Orleans aud 
Northensteru Kailroad, belonging to the Queen and Cres- 
cent system, passes through the parish. 

Covington, population 1,205, situated on the Bogue 
Falia, is the parish seat. It is connected with the New 
Orleans aud Northeastern Railroad at West Pearl Sta- 
tion. Sugar, rice, cotton, corn, hay, oats, beans, sweet 
and Irish potatoes and truck garden varieties are exten- 
sively raised. 

So famous has this parish become as a health resort, 
that it is known everywhere now as the "Ozone Belt." 
Thousands of cases of lung complaints have been suc- 
cessfully cured by this salubrious climate. Beautiful 
springs, whose waters are recognized as of great medi- 
cinal value, abound through the parish.' The most 
famous of these is the Abita Spring, which has a capacity 
of 40,000 gallons daily. 

The fruits and nuts are, peaches, plums, pears, 
pecans, apples, figs, prunes, grapes, pomegranates, 
quinces and persimmons. 

Cattle, hogs, sheep and a few horses are raised. 
Ciame consists of squirrels, rabbits, coons, opossums, deer, 
wild turkeys, wild ducks, papabots, becasine, snipe, part- 
ridges and rice birds. Fish are plentiful in the streams 
and lakes; fine trout, bass and pike are taken. The tim- 
ber is, pine, oak, cypress, gum, elm and hickory. 

There are several thousand acres of United States 



Government land in the parish. Lands are worth from 
$1.50 to $25.00 per acre. 

TANGIPAHOA PARISH. 

This parish is situated in the southeastern part of 
the State, has a population of 17,625, and contains 505,(500 
acres of land. The formation is pine hills, pine flats, 
wooded swamps, and a small amount of alluvial land. 
The soil is fertile and productive. It is drained by the 
Tangipahoa, Chefuncta, Natalbany and Ponchatoula 
Kivers, Chappapeela Creek and numerous smaller streams. 
Water is abundant and of good quality. 

The Illinois Central Railroad extends through the 
parish, north and south. Amite City, situated on this 
line of road aud near the Taugipahoa River, is the parish 
seat, and, in 1900, had a population of 1,547. Hammond, 
population 1,511, has become very popular as a winter 
resort. 

Cotton is the chief crop product, and corn, oats, hay, 
sugar, rice, tobacco, sorghum, sweet and Irish potatoes, 
peas, and truck and garden varieties are grown. Along 
the line of the Illinois Central, truck and strawberries are 
extensively grown and shipped. Fruits are, peaches, 
pears, apples, plums, grapes, quinces, figs, poraegranati s. 
persimmons, and a variety of smaller kinds. Cattle, hogs, 
sheep and horses are raised. The timber is, pine, oak, 
ash, gum, elm, hickory, poplar, cucumber, Cottonwood, 
willow, beech and sycamore. 

Game is found, such as squirrels, coons, opossums, 
foxes, rabbits, deer, wild turkeys, wild ducks, woodcock, 
snipe, becasine, rice birds, partridges and robins. Fish 
of excellent quality are taken from the streams; trout, 
bass, pike and blue cat are found. 

There are several thousand acres of United States 



79 



Government land in the parish. ■Land is worth from $1.00 
to $25.00 per acre. 

TENSAS PARISH. 

This ]i;irisli is situated in the northeastern part of 
the State, has a population of 19,070, and contains 410,240 
acres of land. The formation is alluvial lands and wooded 
swamp; soil very rich and productive. It is drained by 
the Mississippi and Tensas Rivers, and Bayous Vidal, 
Durossett, Choctaw and Clark's. Water is plentiful and 
good. St Josejjh, situated on the Mississippi River, is 
the parish seat. 

The new Gould line traverses the parish from north 
to south, furnishing direct communication with New 
Orleans and St. Louis. 

Cotton is the chief crop product for export; corn, 
hay, oats, sweet and Irish potatoes, peas and garden 
varieties are grown. This is one of the chief cotton 
parishes. The fruits are, peaches, plums, pears, and 
apples. Cattle, hogs, and some sheep and horses are 
raised. 

The timber is oak, gum, cypress, cottonwood, pecan, 
persimmon, magnolia, elm, sycamore and willow. 

Game is found, such as squirrels, rabbits, deer, bear, 
wild turkeys, wild ducks and geese, woodcock, snipe, part- 
ridges, jilover, rice birds and robins. 

Fish, in quantity, are taken from the lakes and 
bayous; bass, trout, white perch and pike are found. 
Land is worth from $1.00 to $30.00 per acre. 

TERREBONNE PARISH. 

This jjarish is situated in the southern part of the 
State, has a population of 24,464, and contains 1,265,280 
acres. The formation is largely composed of coast marsh 
with a considerable area of alluvial lands and wooded 



swamp. The soil is exceedingly rich and productive. It 
is drained partially by Black, I)e Large, Grand and Petit 
Caillou Bayous, and Blue and Blue Hammock Bayous. 

Houma, situated on Bayou Terrebonne, is the parish 
seat, and in 1900 had a population of 3212. It is con- 
nected with the Southern Pacific Railroad at Schriever 
Station. Sugar and rice are the chief crop productions; 
jute, peas, hay and Irish potatoes are grown. The fruits 
are, oranges, lemons, mandarins, olives, bananas, prunes, 
figs, pomegranates, guavas and plums. The timber is, 
oak, cypress, gum, elm and willow. 

Some cattle and hogs are raised. Game is found, 
such as wild ducks and geese, papabots, jack snipe, beca- 
sine, pheasants, rice birds, squirrels, deer and bear. Fish 
of fine quality are found; sheepshead, pompano, salt 
water trout, Spanish mackerel, pike and crabs. Oyster 
and shrimp canning is quite an important industry. 

There are several thousand acres of United States 
Government land. Land is worth from $5.00 to $50.00 
per acre. 

UNION PARISH. 

This parish is situated in the northern part of the 
State, has a population of 18,520, and contains 582,700 
acres of land. The formation is good upland, red, sandy 
clay, and some alluvial lands. The soil is very fertile 
and productive. It is drained by the Ouachita River, 
bayou D 'Arbonne, and affluents of these streams. 

The Arkansas Southern and the Little Rock and 
Monroe Railroads run through the parish, north and 
south. 

The Farmerville and Southern Railroad runs from 
main line of the Little Rock and Monroe to Farmerville, 
which is the parish seat. 



80 



Water is abundant and of good quality, good gprings 
and wells, 'and numerous branches and creeks. 

Cotton is the chief crop product, and corn, oats, 
hay, wheat, buckwheat, sorghum, peas, sweet and Irish 
potatoes, tobacco and sugar-cane are raised. Diversified 
farming is practiced. 

The fruits are, peaches, apples, pears, plums, grapes, 
pomegranates, figs and quinces. Excellent fruit is raised. 

The timber is, pine, oak, beech, hickory, maple, wal- 
nut, holly, gum, elm and poplar. 

Live stock, raised on the farms, comprise cattle, 
sheep, hogs and horses. Game consists of squirrels, rab- 
bits, coons, opossums, foxes, deer, wild turkeys, wild 
ducks, woodcock and partridges. Trout, bar fish and 
speckled and blue cat are found among the fish in 
the streams. 

There are several thousand acres of United States 
Government land in the parish. Land Is worth from $1.00 
to $10.00 per acre. 

VERMILION PARISH. 

Vermilion parish is situated in the southwestern part 
of the State, has a population of 20,70-5, and contains 
800,000 acres of land. The formation is coast marsh, 
prairie, alluvial and bluff lands; soil rich and productive. 
It is drained by the Vermilion Eiver, and bayou Queue 
de Tortue and Fresh Water. Abbeville, situated on the 
Vermilion Eiver, is the parish seat. 

A branch of the Southern Pacific Railroad runs 
through the parish. 

Rice is the chief crop product; sugar, corn, oats, hay, 
peas, sweet and Irish potatoes, and truck varieties are 
raised. The fruits and nuts are, oranges, lemons, man- 
darins, plums, pecans, guavas, figs, peaches, prunes, 



pomegranates and grapes. The timber varieties are, oak, 
gum, elm, cypress, Cottonwood and willow. 

Live stock raised are, cattle, hogs, sheep and horses. 
Game consists of rice birds, pheasants, becasine, snipe, 
partridges, papabots and wild ducks and deer. Fish are 
taken from the streams and inlets, and crabs, oysters, 
diamond-back terrapins and salt water varieties of fish 
are found. 

Lands are worth from $2.00 to $30.00 per acre. 

VERNON PARISH. 

This parish is situated in the western part of the 
State, has a population of 10,327, and contains 986,600 
acres of land. The formation is chieily pine hills, with 
a little prairie and alluvial lands. The Kansas City 
Southern Railroad runs from north to south through this 
parish. It is drained by the Sabine and Calcasieu Rivers, 
and bayous Comrade, (!astor, Anacoeo, and numerous 
small streams. Water is abundant and of good quality. 
The soil is fairly productive. 

Leesville, on the Kansas City Southern Railroad, is 
the parish seat. Cotton is the chief crop product, and 
corn, hay, oats, peas, sweet and Irish potatoes, and sorg- 
hum, are grown. 

The fruits and nuts are, peaches, pears, pecans, ap- 
ples, figs, pomegranates, plums and grapes. Live stock 
comprises cattle, sheep, hogs and horses. Game consists 
of deer, squirrels, coons, opossums, rabbits, beaver, 
wild turkeys, wild ducks, partridges, woodcock, pheasant, 
becasine, snipe, plover and rice birds. There are fine 
varieties of fish found in the streams, among them trout, 
pike, bar fish and bass. 

The timber is, pine, oak, elm, gum, willow, hickory, 
and Cottonwood, Extensive areas of long-leaf pine exist. 



81 



Tlicrci ure soverul tlioiisuml ncros of United States 
Ooverniiipnt laud in tlic parish. J^ands arc worth from 
$-2.im to $-JO.nO ppr aero. 

WASHINGTON PARISH. 

This parisli is situated in tlie northeast corner of the 
southeast portion of the State, has a population of 9,628, 
and contains 427,.520 acres of land. The formation is 
pine hills and tiats, with a little alluvial land along its 
eastern border. The soil is fairly good. It is drained 
by Pearl River, Bogue Chitto and Chefuncta Creek. 
Water is abundant and good. 

The Keiitwood and Easti'vn Kaihvay runs through 
northern part of the parish. 

Franklinton, situated on the Bogue Chitto, is the 
parish seat. Cotton is the chief crop product; hay, oats, 
corn, sweet and Irish potatoes, tobacco, sorghum, peas 
and the truck varieties are grown. The fruits are, 
peaches, pears, plums, apples, figs, quinces, pomegranates 
and gra])es. 

Live stock are, cattle, horses, hog.s and sheep. Game 
is found, such as deer, foxes, coons, opossums, squirrels, 
rabbits, beaver, wild turkeys, wild ducks, partridges, 
woodcock and rice birds. Fish aliound in the creeks, and 
among the varieties arc, trout, bar fish, bass and pike. 

The timber is, pine, long leaf, beech, holly, poplar, 
gum, elm, magnolia, oak and ma)dc. There are several 
thousand acr<'S of United States (iovernment land. Lands 
are wnrtli t'lMin .■fl.nO to ^^lO.dl) p(>r acre. 

WEBSTER PARISH. 

Tliis parish is sitmited in the nortliwestern part of 
the Slate, has a poinilation of 1.5,12.'), and contains .39.3,600 
acres of land. Tlie formation is good uplands and some 
alluvial lands. The soil is very good and fertile. It is 



drained by Dorehite, Crows and Black Lake Bayou.s and 
lake Bisteneau. Minden is the parish seat, and has a 
population of 1,.561. The water is plentiful and good; 
springs, wells and small streams abound. 

The Vicksburg, Shreveport and Pacific Eailroad ex- 
tends east and west, and the Louisiana and Arkansas 
Railroad north and south through the parish. Cotton is 
is the chief crop product, and corn, hay, oats, peas, sorg- 
Inim, sugar-cane, sweet and Irish potatoes and tobacco 
are grown. 

The fr\iits are, peaches, pears, apples, plums, figs, 
grapes, pomegranates and quinces. Salt deposits exist, 
and beds of potters' clay, fire clay, lignite and marl are 
found. Timber is, pine, oak, gum, hickory, beech, holly, 
elm, poplar, walnut and maple. 

J^ive stock raised are, cattle, sheep, hogs and a few 
horses. Game consists of squirrels, deer, foxes, rabbits, 
coons, opossums, wild turkeys, wild ducks, woodcock, 
robins and partridges. Fish of good quality are found 
in the streams. 

WEST BATON ROUGE. 

This parish is situated in the south central part of 
the State, and lies west of the Mississippi River. It has 
.a population of 10,285, and in area is the smallest parish, 
except Orleans, in the State, and contains 134,400 acres 
of lanil. The formation is alluvial land, and wooded 
swam]i, very fertile and productive. The Mississijipi 
River drains the eastern borders, and bayous Grosse Tete, 
Poydras and Stumpy the other sections. Drinking water 
is good. 

The Tcx.-is and Pacific Railroad passes through the 
southern part of the parish, and has a branch road lead- 
ing from B;i,ton Rouge Junction to the Red River. This 



82 



br!\neli line will form part of the main line of the new 
Gmilil line, St. Louis to New Orleans. 

Port Allen, situatetl on the west bank of the Missis- 
sippi Biver, is the parish seat. The timber consists of 
oak, cypress, pecan, persimmon, gum, poplar, Cottonwood, 
hackberry and willow. The general crop of the parish 
is sugar; rice, corn, hay, oats, sweet and Irish potatoes, 
peas, cotton and the garden varieties are produced. 
Fruits are, pears, peaches, plums, apples, figs and grapes. 

Some live stock are raised, such as cattle, hogs, 
sheep and horses. Game and fish abound; deer, bear, 
squirrels, coons, opossnms, wild turkeys, wild geese and 
ducks, becasine, jack snijie, partridges, rice birds and 
robins are found. 

Lands are worth from $2.50 to .$30.00 per acre. 

WEST CARROLL PARISH. 

This purisli is situated in the northeastern part of 
the State, has a population of 3,865, and contains 243,200 
acres of land. It is of bluff formation chiefly, with some 
wooded swamp and alluvial land, the soil of which is 
rich and productive. It is drained by bayou Macon on 
the eastern and Boeuf River on its western borders. 
Floyd, situated on bayou Macon, is the parish seat. 
Water is abundant and of good quality. 

Cotton is the chief crop product, and corn, hay, oats, 
sugar-cane, sweet and Irish potatoes, sorghum, peas, and 
the garden varieties are raised. The timber varieties 
are, oak, cypress, ash, beech, elm, gum, Cottonwood, pecan, 
locust, hickory, magnolia, holly, mulberry and persimmon. 

Live stock, such as cattle, sheep, hogs and horses 
are raised. 

Game abounds, among which are deer, bear, squirrels, 
rabbits, coons, opossums, foxes, wild turkeys, wild ducks 



and geese, robins and woodcock. Fishing is good in the 
streams, ami bass, bar fish, white perch and trout are 
found. 

There is some United States Government land in the 
parish. 

Private lauds are wortli from .$2.00 to $10.00 per 
acre. 

WEST FELICIANA PARISH. 

This parish is situated in the southeastern part of 
the State, has a population of 15,994, and contains 24(5,400 
acres of land. The formation is bluff anil alluvial land, 
with some wooded swamp. It is drained by the Missis- 
sippi River, bayous Tunica and Sara, and Thompson's 
Creek. A branch line of the Mississippi Valley Railroad, 
from Slaughter Station to AVoodville, Miss., extends 
through the parish. The new line of the Louisiana Bail- 
way and Navigation Company traverses the parish. 

St. Francisville, situated on the Mississippi River, is 
the parish seat, and has a population of 1,059. The water 
throughout the parish is abundant and of good quality. 
The chief crop product is cotton; corn, hay, oats, peas, 
sweet and Irish potatoes, sorghum, sugar-cane and 
tobacco are raised. The timber is cypress, Cottonwood, 
willow, oak, pine, beech, gum, elm, magnolia, holly hack- 
berry, hickory, poplar', sycamore, walnut and persimmon. 
The fruits and nuts are, peaches, pears, pecans, apples, 
prunes, pomegranates, figs, quinces and grapes. Live 
stock thrives remarkably well, and this parish has long 
been noted for its superior breeds of blooded cattle. 
Hogs, sheep and horses do well here. Game abounds, 
such as deer, coons, opossums, foxes, rabbits, squirrels, 
beavers, wild turkeys, wild ducks and geese, partridges, 
snipe, rice birds and woodcock. Excellent varieties of 



83 



fish are taken from the lakes, bayous and creeks, among 
which are trout, bass, white perch and bar fish. 

The Tunica hills are most suitable for grape culture 
and horticulture, the soil being a rich marl loam. Land 
is worth from $2.00 to $2.5.00 per acre. 

WINN PARISH. 

Winn parish is situated near the central part of the 
State, has a population of 9,648, and contains 610,560 
acres of land. The formation is pine hills, with a small 
amount of good uplands. The soil is fair, and in the 
creek bottoms very good. It is drained by the Dugde- 
mona Eiver, Saline Bayou, Flat Creek, bayou Jatt and 
other streams. The water is abundant and good. 

The Louisiana Railway and Navigation Company 
and the Arkansas Southern railroads run through the 
parisli. 



Winnfield, situated near the center, is the parish seat. 
Cotton is the chief product; corn, hay, oats, peas, sweet 
and Irish potatoes, sorghum, sugar-cane and tobacco are 
grown. The fruits and nuts are, peaches, pears, plums, 
apples, figs, pecans, English walnuts, quinces, grapes and 
pomegranates. The timber comprises pine, oak, elm, 
liickory and gum. There are extensive areas of long-leaf 
pine. Live stock are, cattle, sheep and hogs. Game con- 
sists of deer, coons, opossums, foxes, squirrels, rabbits, 
wild turkeys, robins, woodcock and partridges. Fish of 
good varieties are found in the streams. There are de- 
posits of salt, marble, lignite, kaolin, gypsum, limestone, 
iron, fire clay, and potters' clay. There are several thou- 
sand acres of United States Government land in the 
parish. Lands are worth from $1.00 to $10.00 per acre. 



Forces at Work in Behalf of the Farmer. 



BOARD OF AGRICULTURE AND IMMIGRATION. 

To this Department is entrusted the direction of the 
Experiment Stations. The Department endeavors to get 
as close to the farmers as possible. Periodically, crop 
reports, setting forth the prospects, conditions and 
variety of crops in Louisiana, accompanied always with 
one or more papers relating to some particular question 
of importance in agriculture by some distinguished agri- 
culturist, are distributed free to the farmers of the State. 
As a Bureau of Information, the Department invites, re- 
ceives and answers thousands of letters annually, seek- 



ing agricultural information. It issues, from time to 
time, other agricultural literature for distribution. It 
annually distributes to the farmers of Louisiana reliable 
vegetable and field seed in small quantities. 

THE LOUISIANA STATE UNIVERSITY AND AGRI- 
CULTURAL AND MECHANICAL COLLEGE, 

Is doing a grand work in the education of young men of 
the State in Agriculture and its underlying sciences. 
Special courses are provided in Agriculture, the Me- 
chanics, Chemistry, and the culture of sugar-cane, Veter- 



84 



inary Science, Entomology, Horticulture, Geology and 
Biology, which fully equip many young men to engage 
in agricultural pursuits, where they become teachers and 
leaders in their respective communities throughout the 
State. The foundation is here being laid for an advanced 
and modern system of agriculture, which a great agri- 
cultural State like Louisiana stands in need of. 

AGRICULTUEAL EXPERIMENT STATIONS. 

The Agricultural Experiment Stations of the Louis- 
iana State University, created by an Act of Congress, 
known as the "Hatch Bill," passed in 1887, appropriates 
$15,000 annually for the establishment of Experiment 
Stations in connection with the State Agricultural Col- 
leges. The Legislature of Louisana appropriates annu- 
ally a like amount for the maintenance of these Stations. 
The Board of Supervisors of the State University divided 
these funds equally between three Stations. One is 
located on the College grounds at Baton Rouge, Louis- 
iana, known as the "State Experiment Station,'' and 
deals with general agriculture upon the bluff lands uf 
the State. One is located at Audubon Park, New Or- 
leans, Louisiana, known as ' ' The Sugar Experiment Sta- 
tion, " and deals especially with sugar-cane and its 
manufacture, and incidentally with oranges and semi- 
tropical crops. It is located upon alluvial lands. One 
located in North Louisiana, at Calhoun, Louisiana, known 
as "The North Louisiana Experiment Station," in the 
Parish of Ouachita, on the line of the Vioksburg, Shreve- 
port and Pacific Railroad, deals with general diversified 
agriculture, dairying, live stock and jioultry. It is 
situated on the oak, hickory, and short-leaf pine lands 
of the State, geologically known as "good uplands." 
Thus, it is seen, Louisiana has three Experiment Stations, 



located upon the different types of soils, each studying 
and solving the problems that concern education of the 
farmers of the State. An Agricultural Society is con- 
ducted in connection with each Station, and holds 
monthly meetings. At these meetings the farmers 
gather and discuss questions in agriculture, and inspect 
the manifold experiments conducted by the Stations. The 
Experiment Stations have already accomplished a great 
work for the farmers of Louisiana, and no educational 
force holds out more promise for advanced agriculture 
than do our Experiment Stations. Bulletin reports on 
crops, fertilizers, horticulture, dairying, etc., are issued 
and distributed free, to farmers. 

FARMERS' INSTITUTES. 

The Department of Agriculture has inaugurated and 
conducts a system of Parmers' Institutes in Louisiana 
which are of inestimable value. At these Institutes, 
specialists in agriculture come in personal contact with 
the farmers, delivering lectures, asking questions, and 
having them answered, interchanging ideas, all of which 
brings out the most practical and needful agricultural 
information. These Institutes are well attended. At the 
end of the Institute season, the very best of the papers 
read, and lectures delivered, and the discussions fol- 
lowing, are published as a Farmers' Institute Bulletin 
for free distribution. Permanent Farmers' Institute 
Clubs and Agricultural Societies are rapidly being organ- 
ized, holding monthly meetings, which bring the local 
farmers together. 

PARISH AGRICULTURAL FAIRS. 

Are being organized and conducted in a great many of 
the parishes of Louisiana, the Department of Agriculture 
taking a leading part in this work, contributing liberally 



86 



to the premium fund of each fair. Quite a number of 
these fairs have already been organized, and a great 
many more are planned for organization during the fall 
of 1905. 

The Farmers' Institutes, Agricultural Clubs and 
Parish Fairs, form a trinity of educational forces at 
work in the several parishes of the State that cannot 
be equaled. 

FERTILIZER LAW. 

The Department of Agriculture has the enforcement 
and control of the Fertilizer Feed Stuff and Paris Green 
Laws, which secure to the farmer unadulterated fertili- 
zerSjCOttou seed meal feed stuff and Paris green, and pro- 
tects him against fraud in their purchasq. This is a most 
imiiortant work in Ijclialf of agriculture. 

STATE AGRICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

The State Agricultural Society, whose membership 
is extensive, is of long existence, and has accomplished 
a valuable educational work for Louisiana agriculture. 
It holds its meetings annually in different parts of the 



State. Its proceedings are secured, published and dis- 
tributed, free of cost to the farmers of the State by this 
department. This Society, with the other agricultural 
societies of the State, performs an important work. These 
forces have but recently been at work; but already 
fruitful results are being realized. The old one-crop sys- 
tem — cotton — is rapidly giving way to a diversified sys- 
tem. Farmers are rapidly learning the capacity of their 
soils, and are growing a great variety of crops. They 
are learning the value of raising upon the farm all that 
is consumed upon the farm. Many farms are already 
self-sustaining, and others are rapidly falling into line. 
Improved methods in agriculture, improved, implements, 
intelligent fertilization, and proper selection of seeds 
and varieties, the introduction of improved live stock, 
and intelligence in their care and management, are bring- 
ing about an improved state of agriculture that nowhere 
else exists, and the day is not far distant when Louis- 
iana, pursuing this course, will show to the world that 
nowhere outside of her borders is a living so easy to 
obtain, nor money so easily made. 



Education. 



T 



HE facilities for public education, provided by the 
State of Louisiana, may best be made known by 
presenting an outline of the organization and gov- 
ernment of her public school system. 
The officials in charge of tlio school system comprise 
the State Superintendent of Public Education, the State 
Board of Education, and the parish school boards, ap- 
pointed by the State Board, with the parish superinten- 

86 



dents, who, in turn, are elected by the school boards. 
The State Superintendent has general supervisory powers 
limited by some details that are necessarily subject to 
local control. He is ex-officio a member of the State 
Board of Education and the several boards of adminis- 
trators of the institutions of higher learning maintained 
by the State; decides and rules upon questions of school 
law, and in controversies that arise between school offi- 



cors and others as to interpretation of law; apportions 
the current school fund; issues commissions for appoint- 
ments by the State Board; prepares and issues mailing 
matter and blanks for the instruction and use of the 
parochial authorities; secures statistics and information 
for the guidance of the Legislature in educational affairs; 
is the local agent of the Peabody fund; and maintains 
a large correspondence within and without the State on 
matters educational. 

The State Board of Education decides upon ques- 
tions of law referred by the State Superintendent, or 
upon appeals from his decision; makes certain general 
resohitions for the guidance of school boards, in matters 
where the law is not plain; elects members of parish 
school boards, and selects a list of uniform school text 
hooks to be used in the schools for a term of four years, 
and appoints the depositaries in charge of the wholesale 
of the books. 

The local management of the schools devolves upon 
till' parish school boards. The parish Board of Direc- 
tors select from their number a president. They elect 
or appoint a parish superintendent, who is ex-oflficio secre- 
tary of the board. They are authorized, in their discre- 
tion, to appoint auxiliary visiting trustees for each ward 
or school district, or school, in the parish; such trustees 
make quarterly reports to the parish boards of the actual 
condition of, and make needful suggestions in all mat- 
ters relating to the schools they have in charge as 
trustees. The parish Board of Directors report to the 
State Board of Education all deficiences in the schools, 
or neglect of duty on the part of teachers, superinten- 
dent or other officer. They visit and examine the schools 
in the several school districts of the parish from time 
to time, and they meet and advise with the trustees 



when occasion requires (if auxiliary trustees be appointed 
by the board of the parish). They apportion the school 
fund to the several districts in the piarish in proportion 
to the number of persons in the district between the 
ages of six and eighteen years, and determine the num- 
ber of schools to be opened, the location of the school- 
houses, the number of teachers to be employed, and their 
salary. They make such rules and by-laws for their 
own government as they deem proper. The regular meet- 
ing of each parish board is held on the first Saturday 
of January, April, July and October, and it may hold 
such special and adjourned meetings as the board may 
determine, or as occasion may require. Each member 
receives payment for his attendance at school board 
meetings, but the amount must not be fixed at more 
than $2 per diem. But the whole amount expended an- 
nually does not exceed $100. The school board must 
exercise proper vigilance in securing for the schools of 
the parish all funds destined for the .support of the 
schools, including the State fund apportioned thereto, 
the poll-tax collectible, and all other funds. All con- 
tracts for improvements are let to the lowest responsible 
biilder. They have power to recover for any damages 
that may be done the property in their charge, and may, 
by a two-thirds vote of the whole board, after due notice 
change the location of a schoolhouse, sell or dispose of 
the old site and use the- proceeds toward procuring a 
new one. 

The law requires the school boards to limit their 
expenses to the amount of their annual income, as a re- 
striction on contracts and debts. The district attorney 
is ex-ofScio the attorney of the school board. 

The parish superintendent, or secretary of the board, 
is the executive officer of the board, and carries into 



87 



effect its ordinances. He is required to visit the schools, 
to receive and require reports from the teachers, and in 
turn to report annually to the State Superintendent. He 
is one of the committee of three to appoint teacher.s, 
and superintends the examination of applicants for posi- 
tions. All teachers who apply for schools must undergo 
an examination, the test questions for which are supplied 
to the parish authorities by the State Superintendent. 

SOURCES OF REVENUE. 

Tlie animal State tax is limited to six mills on the 
assessed valuation of property subject thereto, and that 
of the parish to ten mills on the dollar, with the proviso, 
however, that parishes, municipal corporations, wards 
and school di.striets, may levy special taxes in excess of 
said limitation, whenever the rate and purposes of the 
tax shall have been submitted to a vote of the property 
taxpayers, and a majority, in number and in value, shall 
have voted therefor, for the purpose of erecting school- 
houses or maintaining schools, and for other im])rove- 
ments. Tlie rate of the State tax is fixed at not less 
than one and a quarter mill of the amount received, and 
this is apportioned by the State Superintendent to 'the 
parishes in proportion to the number of educable youth; 
and at tht- last session of the Legislature (1904), one 
and five-eightlis mills were apportioned to this fund. 

The school funds of the State are expressly de- 
clared by the present Constitution to be: 

1. Not less than one and a quarter mill of the six 
mills tax levied and collected by the State. 

2. The proceeds of taxation for school purposes as 
provided by the Constitution. 

3. The interest on the proceeds of all public lands, 
heretofore granted or to be granted by the United States 



for the support of the public schools, and the revenua 
derived from such lands as may remain unsold. 

4. Of all lands or other property heretofore and 
hereafter bequeathed, granted or donated, to the State 
for school purposes. 

5. All funds and property other than unimproved 
lands, bequeathed or granted to the State, not desig- 
nated for any other purpose. 

6. The proceeds of vacant estates falling under the 
law, to the State of Louisiana. 

7. The Legislature may appropriate to the same 
fund the proceeds of public lands not designated or set 
apart for any other purpose, and shall provide that every 
parish may levy a tax for the public schools therein, 
which shall not exceed the entire State tax; provided 
that with such tax the whole amount of taxes shall not 
exceed the limits of parish taxation fixed by the Con- 
stitution. The City of New Orleans shall make such 
appropriations for the support, maintenance and repair 
of the schools of the city as it may deem proper, but 
not less than eight-tenths of a mill any one year. 

The Legislature of 1902 has also provided that the 
' ' proceeds of all fines imposed by the District Courts 
throughout the State, and amounts of forfeited bonds, 
collected in criminal cases, less cost and commission. 
This latter fund, and that derived from the capitation 
tax are collected by the several sheriffs, who are ex-oificio 
tax collectors, and are paid over to the parish treasurers 
of their respective parishes, for the use and benefit of 
the local schools, and, are not paid into the State 
Treasury and apportioned by the State Superintendent. 
The same observation applies to the parish school tax, 
as will hereafter be noticed. The revenue obtained from 
these several sources is to be applied strictly and solely 



88 



1 IR 


pnoE 


f " 







MI1.L MEMORIAL LrBRARY, LOUISIANA STATE UN1VEHSITT 




PRESIDENTS HOUSE AND CADET BARRACKS OF LOUISIANA 
STATE UNIVERSITY. BATON ROUGE 



LXXXT 





-IAIN BUILDING. LOUISIANA INDUSTRIAL INSTITUTE. RUSTON, LA. 



"/AIN BUILDING. SOUTHWESTERN LOUISIANA INDUSTRIAL 
INSTITUTE, LAFAYETTE. LA. 





MAIN BUILDING. SOUTHERN UNIVERSITY AND A. 8. M COLLEGE 
'colored! new ORLEANS 



LXXXII DORMITORY FOR GIRLS. SOUTHWESTERN LOUISIANA INDUSTRIAL 

INSTITUTE. LAFAYETTE. LA 





ARK View HIGH SCHOOL, SHREVEPORT. LA 



SHREVEPORT MICH SCHOOL 



LXXXIII 




CAHSEGIE LIBRARY AT LAKE CHARLES. LA. 



II 







M 



YOUNG LADIES' OORMlTORf. LOUISIANA INDUSTRIAL 
INSTITUTE. RUSTON. LA. 



-t-tl 




■ 






^pS^^V 



FOSTER HALL, LOUISIANA STATE UNIVERSITY 




HIGH SCHOOL, ALEXANDRIA. LA. 



to the establishment and support of free public schools, 
and there is a special constitutional inhibition against 
appropriating any part of it to the support of sectarian 
schools." 

Briefly our educational systems are: 
1.— SCHOOL SYSTEMS. 

(1) A State system of public schools supported 
partly by State taxation, partly by police jury, and other 
local appropriations, and supervised by a State superin- 
tendent of public instruction, a State board of education, 
and parish school boards. 

(2) The City school systems separate in organiza-- 
tion and supervision from the State system, but partially 
supported by the prorated school revenues of the State. 
II.— HIGHEE EDUCATION. 

(1) High schools ofiicially recognized by the State 
Board of Education as pursuing an approved curriculum. 

(2) The State University and Agricultural and 
Mechanical College. 

(3) Tulane University of Louisiana, which although 
exacting tuition fees, may be considered a semi-public 
institution, owing to its scholarship system, and the fact 
that the State contributes indirectly largely to its sup- 
port by exempting its investments from taxation. 
III.— PROFESSIONAL EDUCATIONAL TRAINING. 

(1) The State Normal School at Natchitoches. 

(2) The New Orleans Normal School. Both of these 
institutions are preparing for the public school service 
of the State a corps of fully equipped and professionally 
trained teachers. 

(3) State Teachers' Institutes and Summer Normal 
Schools. These give the opportunity of one month's 
training and professional study to teachers who are un- 



able to take the more extended courses of the State 
Normal School, and are supported largely by annual ap- 
propriations from the Peabody fund. 

(4) Parish Teachers' Institutes of one week's 
duration required by law to be held under the auspices 
of parish superintendents of education. 

(5) Educational Associations, such as the annual 
convention of parish superintendents of education; the 
annual meeting of the State Teachers' Association; the 
monthly meetings of parish and city teachers ' associa- 
tions, all of which exert a powerful influence in the 
direction of professionalizing the business of education. 

IV.— INDUSTRIAL EDUCATION. 

(1) The State Industrial Institute at Euston, giv- 
ing, free of charge, admirable instruction in English, 
science, mechanics, trades, occupations and industries to 
both sexes. 

(2) The Southwestern Industrial Institute, at 
Lafayette, is an institution doing work along the same 
lines. 

(3) State Farmers' Institutes. A series of admir- 
able agricultural gatherings inaugurated by the present 
commissioner, J. G. Lee, in which trained specialists 
bring with them knowledge to the rank and file of our 
farmers the fruits of latest scientific researches, bearing 
vitally upon the prosperity of our agricultural industries. 

v.— GENERAL CULTURE. 

(1) The Louisiana State Chautauqua, embodying 
the best features of the modern Chautauqua movement, 
and bringing together annually for mutual inspiration 
hundreds of our most cultivated and talented people. 

(2) Lyceums and Lecture Courses established at 
various points in our State. 



89 



VT.— PRIVATE AND SECTABIAN SCHOOLS. 

Tlific are many cif these for hotli sexes distributed 
tlir(ui<;li the State. 

VII.— EDUCATION OF THE COLORED. 

(1) Public schools in every town, city and parish. 



(2) Southern University for the higher and indus- 
trial training of negro youth. Much of what the State 
might do for negro education is rendered unnecessary 
owing to the large number of prosperous special institu- 
tions in our midst that are supported by endowment. 



Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College. 



THE Louisiana State University and Agricultural 
and Mechanical College had its origin in the ad- 
ministration of President .Jefferson. Then a town- 
ship of land, north of Red Eiver, was voted to the 
Territory of Orleans to found a seminary of learning; 
afterwards, in the administration of President Madison, 
another township of land, south of Red River, was voted 
for the same purpose. 

The State of Louisiana, formed from the Territory 
of Orleans, fell heir to these townships of land; but the 
' ' Seminary of Learning ' ' was not established, organized 
and opened near Alexandria for the reception of stu- 
dents until January 2, 1860. 

A faculty of iive professors was appointed, and the 
organization and discipline of tlie school was military. 
It was a military academy. 

The institution was becoming quite prosperous; it 
had about 125 cadets present when the Civil War closed 
its doors in ISCil. 

An effort was made in 1862 to reopen it; and, con- 
sidering the troublous times, it was quite successful; but 
the Federal invasion of the Red River A''alley in 1862 
closed its doors again, not to be reopened until October 
2, 186.'). 

The school was progressing finely; it had nearly 200 



cadets present, when, October 15, 1869, the College build- 
ing was destroyed by fire. Given shelter by the State 
in the commodious Deaf and Dumb Asylum Building at 
Baton Rouge, the exercises were resumed there November 
1st, 1869, and the name of the Institute was soon 
changed to "The Louisiana State Uni%'ersity. " Its 
course of study accordingly became broader. 

The life of the school I'an smoothly — the number of 
professors and facilities for instruction greatly increas- 
ing — until 1873, when, as a logical result of the "Politi- 
cal Reconstruction" of the South, there were two con- 
flicting State Governments of Louisian», and for four 
years no appropriations were made for the school; that 
is, the annual interest on its National Endowment was 
not paid. Professors had to leave — for bread for them- 
selves and families — and the number of students was 
reduced to a mere handful. Still life was kept in the 
organization; it was not permitted to die. 

In 1877, the State's political and financial affairs 
having become somewhat settled, the appropriations for 
the support of the school were resumed. Then, too, it 
was that the .\gricultural and Mechanical College was 
united with the State University; and the joint insti- 
tution took on new life, with soon a largely increased 
faculty and number of students. 



90 



The Agricultural and Mechanical College is also a 
gift of the National Government — in the administration 
of President Lincoln. To found the College, 30,000 acres 
of land were voted for each representative and senator 
in Congress from Louisiana. 

In common with the other State Agricultural and 
Mechanical Colleges, the University receives annually 
(since 1887) from the United States Treasury $15,000 
for the maintenance of one or more "Experiment Sta- 
tions." It has three such stations: No. 1, "Sugar Sta- 
tion," at Andubon Park, New Orleans; No. 2, "State 
Station," at Baton Rouge; No. 3, "The North Louisiana 
Experiment Station," at Calhoun, in North Louisiana. 

The LT^niversity also receives annually (since 1890) 
from the United States Treasury its pro-rata (with the 
Southern University in New Orleans) of $15,000 with 
an annual increase of $1,000 for ten years — thereafter 
to be a fixed annual sum of $25,000 — "to be applied only 
to instruction in Agriculture, the Mechanical Arts, the 
English Language, and the various branches of Mathe- 
matical, Physical, and Economic Science." 

Under the State Constitution of 1898, the University 
receives $15,000 per annum from the Legislature for sup- 
port, and special appropriations are maile for repairs, 
insurance, etc. The annual income from all sources for 
the support of the University is about $58,000, with 
special State appropriations from time to time for new 
buildings and other improvements. This constitution 
was amended by a vote of the people at the recent gen- 
eral election, and there is now no limitation as to the 
amount that can be appropriated by the Legislature for 
support. 

Tuition is free to all residents of Louisiana, and 
board and other expenses are reduuced to a minimum. 



In 1886 the National Government remembered the 
University in a most princely manner by giving it the 
use of the extensive grounds and buildings of the Mili- 
tary Garrison and Arsenal at Baton Rouge. By Act of 
Congress, approved April 28th, 1902, the "full and com- 
plete title" to this property was transferred to the Uni- 
versity. And here, on this romantic and historic spot, 
where the Great Nations battle so often and so long for 
the Great River — here the school is to-day. Here, too, 
was the home of Zachary Taylor, President of the United 
States. 

Since its founding, the Unversity has had eminent 
men in its faculty — men distinguished in war, literature 
and science: General William T. Sherman and Admiral 
Raphael Semmes, leaders in he Civil War; Col. David 
F. Boyd, one of the most learned, eminent and indefatig- 
able educators that Louisiana has ever had, successor to 
General Sherman as Superintendent (Col. Boyd had 
served with distinction under "Stonewall" Jackson, and 
on the return , of peace he reorganized the school. To his 
indomitable courage and unflagging zeal, under the most 
discouraging circumstances, was due its preservation dur- 
ing a most eventful period of transition); Doctors An- 
thony Vallas and .James W. Nicholson, mathematicians 
of great fame; Colonels Samuel H. Lockett and Richard 
S. McCuUoch, noted scientists and engineers; Doctors 
Mark W. Harrington, late Chief of the U. S. Weather 
Bureau, and William C. Stubbs, so widely known in 
Agriculture; Richard M. Venable, Baltimore's great law- 
yer and professor of law at Johns Hopkins, and Doctor 
.Tohn R. Page, professor of agriculture in the University 
of Virginia; Doctors James M. Garnett and C. Alphonso 
Smith, among the ablest English scholars and writers 
of this day; and Colonels William Preston Johnston 



91 



president oi' Tulaue Univereity, and Thomas D. Boyd, 
ex-President of the State Normal School, and now 
President of the University. And many of the alumni 
are holding high positions of honor and trust in civil and 
military life. Prominent among them is the present 
Governor of the State — Hon. Newton C. Blanchard. 

The University is proud of its past, but it looks to 
a future full of rapidly expanding usefulness and pros- 
perity. During the past two years many improvements 
have been added; an electric plant has been installed 
which gives light to the buildings and grounds and power 
to the laboratories and workshops; and three handsome 
buildings have been erected, making thirty-four in all. 
The new buildings are the Hill Memorial Library, do- 
nated by Mr. John Hill, of West Baton Rouge, in 
memory of his son, John Hill, Jr., who graduated at the 
University in 1873, and served as one of its supervisors 
until his death in 1893; the Heard Hall, a laboratory for 
Physics, Electricity and Civil Engineering; and the 
Robertson Hall, a large and well equipped mechanical 
workshop. Moreover, there is now in course of construc- 
tion the Alumni Memorial Hall, which will be the hand- 
somest building on the campus. This is an offering of 
love from the alumni of the University. 

The University campus contains 52 acres, and is 
acknowledged to be one of the most beautiful .spots in 
the South. It is on a bluff, high above the Mississippi 
River, and is well drained. The health record of its 
students is excellent. 

The University has a struTji^ faculfy of 30 professors, 
and an attendance of 460 .students froin ton States and 



six foreign countries. It is not coeducational, and has 
no professional departments of medicine or law. 

There are nine regular courses of study, leading to 
the degrees of Bachelor of Arts and Bachelor of Science, 
as follows: the Literary Course, the Latin-Science Course, 
the Agricultural Course, the Mechanical Course, the 
Civil Engineering Course, the Electrical Engineering 
Course, the General Science 'Course, the Sugar Course, 
and the Commercial Course. 

Graduate courses are offered, which lead to the de- 
grees of Master of Arts and Master of Science; and 
special courses are arranged for students who have not 
the time or the inclination to pursue a full four years' 
course. 

It is believed that the Sugar Course, in which excep- 
tional opportunities for practical instruction are afforded 
at the Sugar Experiment Station, offers better training 
for experts in that important industry than can be 
found anywhere else in the world. Mr. Norman Lamont, 
in an article in the Empire Review, London, August, 
1902, concerning the sugar indiistry in the West Indies, 
says: "The proprietor may oJKcer his plantation with 
trained American men; and the parent may send his 
son to receive that superlative technical education freely 
offered to all comers of whatsoever nationality by the 
State University of Louisiana, to whose gifted professor 
of agriculture I am very deeply indebted, not only for 
valuable information placed at my disposal, but for the 
facilities given me for studying, on the spot, the work- 
ing of that admirable sugar school, over which' he 
presides. ' ' 



92 



The Tulane University of Louisiana, New Orleans. 



THE Tulane University of Louisiana, as now consti- 
tuted, is tlie result of a contract entered into in 
1884 by the State of Louisiana and the Board of 
Administrators of the Tulane Educational Fund. 
This contract placed the existing University of Louis- 
iana under the perpetual care of the Tulane Administra- 
tors, with all its property, powers, privileges, immuni- 
ties, and franchises, and with such other powers as might 
be necessary to enable them to ' ' foster, maintain and 
develop a great University in the City of New Orleans." 
By the Act, No. 43, of the Session of 1884, making this 
contract, the name of the institution was changed to 
"The Tulane University of Louisiana. 

In 1882, Mr. Paul Tulane, for many years a resident 
of New Orleans, made to the Administrators appointed 
by him his tirst donation "for the higher education of 
white youth of Louisiana." This gift was only the 
beginning of his generous endowment of the University. 

In 1886, Mrs. Josephine Louise Newcomb, whose 
husband, Warren Newcomb, formerly a resident of New 
Orleans, donated to the Tulane Educational Fund "the 
sum of .$100,000, to be used in establishing the H. 
Sophie Newcomb Memorial College, in the Tulane Uni- 
versity of Louisiana, for the higher education of white 
girls and young women." In thus perpetuating the 
memory of an only child, Mrs. Newcomb enabled the 
Tulane Administrators to round out the ideal of a Uni- 
versity by the creation of an institution that would 
give to women all the educational advantages which had 
before been offered only to men. Mrs. Newcomb added 
largely to her original endowment, and enabled it to 



build the liandsome group of buildings in which it is 
now domiciled. The Newcomb College is one of the best 
endowed institutions for women in the United States. 

The University in all its departments is located in 
the City of New Orleans, the metropolitan city of the 
South, a city long noted for its refined and cultivated 
social life, and destined to become one of the great com- 
mercial centres of the country. The Colleges of Arts 
and Sciences and Technology, and the Graduate Depart- 
ment are on St. Charles avenue, opposite Audubon Park, 
in the handsomest and most rapidly growing suburban 
residential district. The H. Sophie Newcomb Memorial 
College is located in Washington avenue, in one of the 
most attractive parts of the city. The Law and Medical 
Departments are in Canal street, in close proximity to 
the great Charity Hospital, the unrivaled facilities of 
which are freely used in the instruction of the students 
of the Medical Department. 

The University comprises the following departments: 
Graduate Department, College of Arts and Sciences, Col- 
lege of Technology, H. Sophie Newcomb Memorial Col- 
lege for Young Women, Law Department, and Medical 
Department. 

The College of .\rts and sciences offers two courses. 
Classical and Literary, leading to the degree of Bachelor 
of Arts, and a Scientific Course, leading to the degree 
of Bachelor of Science. These courses furnish a broad, 
secure foundation of liberal education. 

The College of Technology offers four courses, lead- 
ing to the degree of Bachelor of Engineering. The 
courses are denominated, according to the special branch, 



93 



MiH'lianical (inelucling Electrical) Engineering, Civil 
Knginecring, Chemical Engineering, anil Sugar Engineer- 
ing. This College is devoted to the higher education of 
young men in engineering. While emphasizing the purely 
technical side, due consideration is given also to culture 
studies. The training of this college aims to produce 
men of broad scholarship, capable of leadership in other 
than technical lines as well as in engineering. 

The H. Sophie Newcomb Memorial College for 
Young Women offers a course of study extending over 
four years, and leading to the degree of Bachelor of Arts. 
The facilities for work in art are exceptionally fine, and 
there is a course in Normal Art, extending over four 
years, for which a diploma of graduation is awarded. 

While the civil law is taught in the I^aw Department 
as the basis of the civil code and of the whole legal 
superstructure of the State, the course of instruction is 
sufficientlv comprehensive to prepare students for admis- 
sion to the bar, not only of Louisiana, l)ut also in any 
of the Coiiiuum Law States of the TTnion. 

The course of instruction in the Medical Department 
is tliorovigli. and with the new, well-ecpiipped laboratories, 
added to the unrivalled practical advantages of the 
Charitv Hospital, this department offers unsurpassed 
facilities for medical education. Medical students are 
given access to the Charity Hospital, without extra 
charge, and far better opportunities for the study of 
diseases therein than are usually enjoyed in the hospitals 
of other cities. 



The University has exceptional facilities for labora- 
tory work in the natural sciences and for experimental 
training in the engineering courses. Few institutions 
are so well equipped in this respect. A separate build- 
ing is provided for the subject of Chemistry, with hand- 
some laboratories and all necessary apparatus and facili- 
ties, where all branches of the subject, including sugar 
and industrial chemistry, can be studied under most 
favorable conditions. A similar building is devoted to 
Physics and Biology, with complete equipment of the 
modern apparatus for advanced work in these branches. 
Extensive laboratories and shops have been erected for 
the engineering work of the College of Technology, fur- 
nishing unsurpassed facilities for the training of me- 
chanical, electrical, and civil engineers, and industrial 
chemists. The University libraries contain about forty 
thousand well-selected volumes, including unbound sets 
of pamphlets, and the reading rooms are supplied with 
complete tiles of the leading reviews and magazines and 
standard works of reference. 

During the session of 1903-190-t, the total teaching 
force numbered ninety-nine professors and instructors, 
and the total number of students who have received 
instruction, in all departments, 1,385, the largest student 
enrollment of any institution in the Southern States. 

Tn all its departments the University occupies twenty 
distinct buildings, neaidy all of which have been con- 
structed within the past ten years, and are in every 
respect modern in their design and appointments. 



94 



Louisiana State Normal Scliool. 



THE must iiiijiuilant agciK'V fur tlie special traiiiiug 
of teachers maiutained by tlie State is the State 
Normal School at Natchitoches. In the latest 
session, 1904-05, the faculty numbered twenty-one, 
and the students enrolled over 500, the students repre- 
senting forty-six parishes of the State, and some coming 
from Arkansas, Texas and Mississippi. 

The normal buildings stand upon a hill overlooking 
the valley of Cane River, one of the channels of Eed 
Kiver, which is three miles away. This valley is one of 
the richest and most beautiful in the world. Elevated 
pine forests border the valley, and the school is located 
on the eminence, or plateau, where the pine hills verge 
upon the alluvial lands. The grounds include over one 
hundred acres under fence, about fifty acres of lawns, 
studded with live oaks, pines, elms, cedars and China 
trees, with fine avenues of pines and Chinas, and fifty 
acres of unbroken forest pines, cleared of underbrush 
and set in grass, with drives and good paths for bicycles. 
The front lawn borders on Chaplin Lake, a sheet of 
clear water about a mile and a half long. 

The buildings are situated near the middle of the 
grounds, and are about a half mile distant from the 
central portion of the town of Natchitoches. There are 
four buildings, besides the president 's cottage. The 
matron 's building is a large two-and-a-half story resi- 
dence, in Virginia style of architecture, erected for a 
plantation mansion about 1840. It has a fine gallery in 
front supported by lofty columns. The rooms are very 
large, well lighted and conveniently arranged. This 
building contains the matron's room, reception room, the 
infirmary, two halls and five large bed rooms. 



Ailjuiuiug this is the convent building, a large two- 
story brick building, with attic, in the mission style of 
architecture, erected in 1857 for the Convent of the 
Sacred Heart, at a cost, it is said, of $75,000. During the 
current year this building has been thoroughly recon- 
structed for the purpose of adapting it for use as the 
ladies' dormitory. It is now in better condition than 
when it was erected, is finished in natui'al wood, painted 
and papered throughout, and contains as comfortable 
and attractive bed rooms as are to be found in any 
school in the country. In this building are the presi- 
dent 's office, the library and reading room, two large 
halls for the literary societies, the supply room and 
thirty-five bedrooms. About twenty feet from the con- 
vent building is the new normal building, a handsome 
structure of modern design, erected in the summer of 
1895, at a cost of $20,000. This contains the assembly 
room, an audience room with a seating capacity of 800, 
ten large class rooms, two smaller recitation rooms, the 
chemical and physical laboratory, two dressing rooms, 
two cloak rooms, three practice school rooms and three 
janitor's closets. The new building is connected with 
the other buildings b.y a covered walk-way. The fourth 
building is known as the dining room building. It has 
been recently reconstructed, being more than double in 
size, and connected with the others by double galleries. 
This contains a dining hall 58x38 feet, to accommodate 
200 persons, a large kitchen, serving room, two store 
rooms, and on the second floor eight bed rooms and nine 
I ath rooms. The president 's cottage, a neat residence 
for the use of the president of the Normal School, occu- 
pies a position near the buildings. 



95 



The school comprises two departments — the Normal 
department, which has for its object to furnish scholastic 
and pedagogical training for the teacher's profession; 
and the practice school, in which methods of teaching 
are exemplified, and in which the Normal students of the 
senior class do one year of actual teaching, under the 
direction, and guidance of the training teachers. The 



Normal conrse covers a period of four years, each session 
being divided into two terms of four months each. New 
Normal classes arc organized at the beginning of each 
term, October 1st and February 1st, so that students who 
cannot attend school continuously until graduation, may 
attend either term of several successive sessions, until 
they complete the course of study. 



Louisiana Industrial Institute. 



THE Louisiana Industrial Institute was created Jjy 
the Legislature of 1894, Act No. 68 of that body, 
providing for the organization and support of an 
institution for the industrial education of both 
sexes. It is recognized in the Constitution of 1898 as a 
part of the educational system of the State. It opened 
its doors in September, 1895, with a faculty of five mem- 
bers, and enrolled during the first session, 202 students. 
It has now twenty-nine teachers in the faculty with an 
enrollment of more than 850. Its growth in all the 
elements contributing to its usefulness and eflSciency has 
been steady and rapid. Since the first session the quar- 
ters for academic and industrial work nave been more 
than doubled, and the equipments for practical and scien- 
tific instruction have been increased more than ten-fold. 
There are three large brick buildings. The main hall 
is a three-story building, containing auditorium, labora- 
tories, shops, oflices, class rooms, library, and other 
rooms. The Girls' Dormitory, likewise a three-story 
brick building, is capable of accommodating over 250 
young ladies. The Mechanics Hall, now in course of 
erection, will, when completed, have cost about $25,000. 
The Boys' Hall, a two-story frame building, will accom- 



modate about 120 people. Besides these a laundry build- 
ing and some three or more cottages are on the grounds. 

The school is organized into the following depart- 
ments: Language and Literature; Pure and Applied 
Mathematics, History and Civics, Biology, Physics and 
Chemistry, Mechanics, Business, Domestic Science, Print- 
ing and Music. The work in each is intensive and prac- 
tical; in the higher classes it becomes technical. In the 
Department of Domestic Science, sewing, cooking, do- 
mestic dair^'ing and gardening are taught. 

The following equipments have been provided for 
ihe work of these departments: 

For English and History: 1200 volumes of standard 
works; wall maps, relief maps, and current magazines. 

For Mathematics: Mathematical models, surveying 
instruments. 

For Biology: Twenty four Eeichert's microscopes, 
one extra bacteriological miscroscope, one microtome, 
camera lucida, dissecting microscopes, reagents for mi- 
croscopic work, rearing cages, aquarium, collection of 
marine invertebrates, collection of marine fishes, etc. 

For Physics and Chemistry: Thirty sets of appa- 
ratus for individual use, chemicals for course, analytical 



96 



balanee, spectroscope, barometer (Buusen), thermome- 
ters, induction coil, Edison Lalande battery, platinum 
crucibles, dishes and cones, graduated cylinders, flasks 
and pipettes, burettes, water baths, distilling apparatus, 
blast lamps, reagent bottles, etc., etc. 

For Drawing: Twenty drawing tables, twenty sets 
drawing instruments. 

For Mechanics: Woodshop, twelve double work- 
benches, twenty-four complete sets of tools, one power 
rip and cross-cut saw combined, twelve wood turning 
lathes, one band saw, complete assortment of special 
tools. 

Forge Shop: Twelve blast forges, twelve anvils, 
complete set of sledges, hammers, tongs, etc. 

Machine Shop: Six engine lathes, one planer, one 
shaper, one drill press, two speed lathes, eight vises, sets 
of wrenches, taps, dies, hammers, chisels, etc., for con- 
structing all kinds of machine work. 



Steam Plant: One 60-horse power Corliss engine, 
one 60-horse power water tube boiler, one steam pump, 
one Hancock inspirator, one Crosby engine indicator, 
calorimeters, thermometers, etc., for testing engines and 
boilers. 

For Business: Six Remington typewriters, eight 
complete tables for bookkeeping, office outfit. 

For Domestic Science: Five Cabinet sewing ma- 
chines, cutting and fitting outfit, food charts, one steel 
range, one coal oil stove, one Aladdin oven, kitchen uten- 
sils, dining room outfit. 

For Printing: One Prouty news press, one Chandler 
& Price job press, one paper cutter, one stapler, complete 
assortment of type. 

For Telegraphy: Batteries, instruments and wire 
connections for twelve students. 

All class rooms are furnished with single desks and 
.slate black-boards. 



The Southwestern Louisiana Industrial Institute. 



THIS institution of learning was established by Act 
162 of the General Assembly of Louisiana, July 
14, 1898, for the education of the white children 
of Louisiana in the arts and sciences. This Act 
prepared and introduced by Hon. Robert Martin, of St. 
Martinville, then representing the Thirteenth Senatorial 
District, provided that the school should be located in 
that one of the three parishes of this District (Iberia, 
Lafayette and St. Martin), which should offer the best 
inducements therefor to the Board of Trustees. At once 
a great and wholesome rivalry arose among the educa- 
tional interests of these three parishes. In Iberia Parish 



the two important towns of Jeanerette and New Iberia 
made most earnest endeavors to secure the location of 
the new State institution, but found themselves opposed 
in Lafayette, not by a single town but by the whole 
parish. And, although the city of New Iberia voted a 
five-mill tax upon their city property for ten years and 
offered with this fifty acres of land on the Teche, aggre- 
gating a value of near $80,000, the Lafayette offer of a 
two-mill tax for ten years upon the property of the en- 
tire parish, supplemented by liberal cash appropriations, 
$3,000 from the Police Jury, $5,000 from the City Coun- 
cil, and by the gift of twenty-five acres of land from 



97 



Mr. Crow Girard and his mother, Mrs. M. A. Girard, 
proved to be the better offer and was accepted by the 
Board of Trustees at their meeting held in New Iberia, 
January 5. 1900. 

The General Assembly of 1900 appropriated $32,000 
for buildings and equipment, and $13,000 for mainte- 
nance, and enacted authority for the Board of Trustees 
to issue bonds upon the security of the ten-year tax voted 
by the town and parish, and thus anticipate this revenue 
for building and equipment. This was accordingly done, 
and the proceeds anu)untod to something more than 
$43,000. 

With these resources the Board was enabled to erect 
and equip a complete group of buildings adequate to 
the needs of the most thoroughly organized secondary 
instituti<in of learning of the present day, both for aca- 
demic instruction and for manual and technical training. 
The Main Building is a handsome brick structure of two 
and one-half stories, 163 feet front by 65 in depth, with 
an eight-foot basement. It contains twelve large class 
rooms, offices, library, laboratories for physics, chemistry, 
photography and cooking; gymnasium for girls, 43x58 



feet, auditorium 62x72, and lecture room 43x65. The 
Pormitory for Girls is also a two-story brick building, 
140x58 feet, and of sufficient capacity to accommodate 
eighty girls. It has every modern appointment for 
health, comfort and school work. The Mechanical Work- 
shop is a single-story frame building with sheathing of 
galvanized iron, and is equipped with work benches, 
lathes, circular and scroll saws, planer, drill press, forges, 
and all accessories for thorough manual training work. 
Its power is a 15-horse power engine, supplied by a 
(iO-horse power boiler, which also heats the buildings. 
And, besides these buildings, there is a neat and sub- 
stantial two-story frame residence for the President. 

The attendance for the first session numbered 145 
students; for the second, 180; and was over 250 for the 
third, which ended the last week in May, 1905. 

The town of Lafayette, in which the Institute is 
situated, is the parish seat of Lafayette Parish. It is 
centrally located on the main line of the Southern Pacific 
Railway and at the terminus of the Alexandria branch 
of this system. It is thus easily accessible from all 
points. 



Southern University and Agricultural and Mechanical C>ollege. 



TlIKConstitutional (.'onvcntion of the State of Lou- 
isiana, in 1870, in its wisdom, established in the 
City of New Orleans an institution to be devoted 
to the higher education of persons of color, to be 
entitled the "Southern University." The support of 
this institution was secured by constitutional provision, 
entitling it to an annual appropriation for its current 
expenses, by the State Legislature, of not more than 



ten thousand dollars, nor less than five thousand dollars. 
At the session of the General Assembly of Louisiana, 
in April 1880, an act was passed, ' ' To establish in the 
(,'ity of New Orleans, a university for the education of 
persons of color; and to provide for its proper govern- 
ment." Although this charter was gotten out in March, 
1881, we find that the school was in existence half a year 
or more previous to that date. For, on October 10th, 



98 



1880, the Board of Trustees held a meeting and passed 
laws designating the proper oiEcers of the Faculty of the 
school. And another meeting was held December 1st, 
1880. 

The school started in a very slow way at first, and 
continued at that pace for some years. 

When the act was passed by the Legislature estab- 
lishing the school, through some oversight the idea 
seemed not to occur to any one that a building would 
be necessary in which this school should hold its daily 
session. A building was essential. The Board of 
Trustees did about the only thing it could do under the 
circumstances. Money, annually appropriated to pay 
teachers' salaries, was applied to secure the first essen- 
tial — a school building — although a number of teachers 
had to be dispensed with. 



A building was purchased on Calliope street, New 
Orleans, and as much money as could bs spared was 
paid towards the same, while a mortgage was given on 
the house for the rest. 

There were no graduates of the school before 1887. 
Since, and including 1902, the total from all departments 
is 213 graduations. The highest number for one year, 
32, was in 1902. 

The University now has an Agricultural Department 
on a farm of 100 acres, a Mechanical Department, a 
Tinsmith Shop, a Printing Department, Dairy, and Girls' 
Industrial Department, supported jointly by the United 
States and State Government. It has also the usual 
Academic Course. The attendance now is over 500. 



Private and Sectarian Schools. 



Besides the above, the different denominations of 
the State have splendid schools and colleges. The Metho- 
dist have a male college, "Centenary," at Jackson, and 
a female college at Mansfield. The Baptists have a male 
college at Mt. Lebanon and a female college at Keat- 
chie. The Catholics have an university and several col- 
leges in New Orleans, Jefferson College at Convent and 



St. Charles College at Grand Coteau. They have numer- 
ous convents in New Orleans and convents in other 
cities and towns of the State. The Silliman Female Col- 
lege at Clinton has long been a famous girls' school. 
Private schools are successfully conducted in New Or- 
leans, Shreveport, Baton Rouge and other cities and 
towns of the State. 



99 



state Institutions. 



INSTITUTE FOR THE DEAF AND DUMB. 

THIS lustitution is situated at Baton Rouge. The 
grounds and buildings are in excellent condition. 
Its financial showing, and everything pertaining 
to its management are all that could be desired. 
Its class departments, oral teaching and industrial in- 
structions are conducted on both scientific and practical 
methods, and it has already sent out a number of expert 
and highly intelligent instructors and teachers from 
among its pupils. Its chief aim is to prepare its pupils 
for the aft'airs of life, and make them industrious and 
self-supporting citizens. Several industrial trades, such 
as furnituremaking and wood-working, shoemaking and 
printing and typesetting, are taught with marked suc- 
cess, and it is hoped to further enlarge and extend these 
departments. 

INSTITUTE FOR THE BLIND. 

Situated at Baton Rouge, this institution does a 
great work in educating and fitting for various walks in 
life the unfortunate ones whose sight is gone. 

Like the other institution referred to above, one 
of the chief aims of the Institute for the blind is, and 
should be, not only to educate, but to fit its pupils for 
the ordinary affairs of life, and make them self-sustain- 
ing. When there is any aptitude whatever, music is 
taught, and many of the pupils have attained great pro- 
ficiency upon several musical instruments. Wicker and 
canework are taught, also sewing, embroidery, etc., and 
the manufacture of brooms has become quite a factor 
in the industrial department. 



SOLDIERS' HOME. 

This institution is situated in New Orleans, and pro- 
vides a home for the disabled veterans of the Civil War 
who fought on the Confederate side, and whose homes 
were in Louisiana. A commodious two-story building 
has been erected, which has added much to the comfort 
of the inmates. 

As time moves on, the lines of those who followed 
Lee and .Jackson are growing thinner, and from the active 
walks of life the number of those disabled and infirm, 
and without the means of support, is gradually increas- 
ing. These veterans of the Lost Cause appeal not only 
to our charity, love and benevolence, but also to our 
sense of justice, and the State should always liberally 
provide for them, as care and want overtake them in 
their declining years. 

Article 302 of the present Constitution recognizes 
this Home as a State institution, and provides that it 
shaH be maintained by the State by an annual appropria- 
tion, which is to be based upon the number of inmates 
in the Home on the first day of April of the year in 
which the appropriation is made, of $130 per capita, for 
the maintenance and clothing of such inmates. 
INSANE ASYLUM. 

This institution, located at Jackson, La., stands pre- 
eminently as a monument to the true charity and benevo- 
lence and exalted humanity of our people. Its fourteen 
hundred inmates are provided with a home, furnished 
with every modem convenience, presided over and di- 
rected by a superintendent and corps of assistants and 
attendants, who exercise kindly and even paternal super- 



100 



vision over them. They are supplied with abundant 
pure water for all purposes, am]>le l;aths, electric lights, 
artificial heat, ice manufactured by the asylum, whole- 
some and abundant food, and healthful grounds and sur- 
roundings. Each individual inmate is made the object 
of investigation and study by the resident physician and 
his assistants, and as a result of skillful and painstaking 
treatment and attention, a very large percentage of the 
inmates, are, from time to time, discharged as completely 
restored. If our people throughout the State could be- 
come more intimately acquainted with the details and 
management of this institution, the usual prejudice 
against it as a gloomy madhouse would be dispelled, 
and it would be seen to be what it is, a sanitarium and 
home for those suffering from disordered and diseased 
minds. It would be a revelation to those who have never 
visited it, to observe the extent of ts grounds, and the 
style and number of its handsome buildings, the com- 
pleteness of its equipment, its scrupulous cleanliness, and 
its peturesque and beautiful situation and surroundings. 

The Legislature, at its session in 1902, passed an 
act providing for the building and establishing of an- 
other Insane Asylum, near Alexandria, funds were ap- 
propriated and the work begun at once. At the extra 
session of the Legislature in 1903, another appropriation 
was made to complete the buildings. This institution will 
be used exclusively for colored patients, and will be 
ready for occupancy about September 1st, 1905. 
CHARITY HOSPITAL, New Orleans. 

This hospital is situated in the City of New Orleans, 
and wjs established in 1832, being among the first free 
hospitals ever established in the United States. 

How well its obligation to humanity is performed 
is attested by the records of this institution. During the 



year 1904, there were 8,816 patients treated in the hos- 
pital, 19,302 in the outdoor clinics, 73,071 free consulta- 
tions given, and the amluilance service responded to 
1,596 calls. The hospital grounds embrace two squares, 
with ambulance house situated in a third square. The 
Richard Milliken Memorial Annex for Children has been 
recently built, and is thorough and modern in every ap- 
pointment. The Pasteur Department, which is also free, 
was added in 1903. 

Year by year, through the State's bounty, and with 
the assistance of donations from her philanthropic citi- 
zens, modern new buildings and equipments have been 
added, until our hospitals stands among those at the 
head of the list of such institutions upon this continent. 

Its able board of administrators and oiBcers, and 
skilled and experienced surgeons and physicians have, 
for the two years past, maintained its well-established 
reputation, and more deeply rooted this institution in 
the hearts of all our people. 

SHEEVEPORT CHARITY HOSPITAL. 

Situated at Shreveport, Louisiana, is another hos- 
pital, whose charitable and benevolent work has spread 
wide all over Louisiana. A very modern four-room brick 
aseptic operating building has been erected and fur- 
nished with the latest and most improved parajihernalia 
and appurtenances. This has grown to be one of the 
fixed State institutions of North Louisiana, and its suc- 
cessful conduct, and the humane, skillful and scientific 
treatment of the indigent sick, and those requiring sur- 
gical attention, have grounded it deep in the affections 
of our people. It also atfords the opportunity of splen- 
did training and practical experience to young men pur- 
suing the study of medicine and surgery. 



101 



STATE PENITENTIARY AND CONVICT FARMS. 

T-he Lef)islatiiro, at its seKsion of 1890, passed an 
act carrying into effect tlie provision of tlie new Constitu- 
tion, wliich proliibited any form of leasing State priso- 
ners anil directed that tliey be employed under absolute 
State control. It was determined to continue the work 
of State building only in so far as it could be furnished 
for such work, first-class men, graded physicall}', and 
employ the rest in agriculture. For this latter purpose, 
•Vugola plantation, embracing 8,000 acres of splendid 
alluvial land, on the Mississippi River, in West Feli- 
ciana parish, and Hope plantation, a sugar estate of 
some 2,800 acres, on Bayou Teche, Iberia parish, were 
purchased. These farms have now been in operation 
over two years, and the results are most gratifj'ing. 
Cotton is the money crop raised on Angola and sugar 
on Hope.. Another farm has been recently purchased 
in Iberville parish, and is now being equipped as a 
penal farm. 

The crops sold and proceeds of levee work for the 
two calendar years 1902-03 brought in the revenue of 
$471,179.39 besides the agricultural products such as 
corn, potatoes, onions, etc., on hand January 1st, 1904, 
and preserved for prison use in 1904, wliich aggregate 
a large value. The system now pays its own expenses 
of operation, and affords a surplus to complete payments 
on property purchased. 



The small factory at the Baton Rouge Penitentiary 
supplies the force with shoes and clothing. 

There have been constructed on these farms perma- 
nent quarters on the most approved sanitary lines. The 
prisoners are compelled to work, according to their 
strength, but they are provided with the best quality of 
food, all they can eat, including an abundance of vege- 
tables, and are well clothed and humanely treated. 

The late lamented Hon. S. M. Jones, at that time 
Mayor of Toledo, Ohio, known over the United States 
as "Golden Rule" Jones, after a recent visit to Hope 
convict farm, wrote an article for one of the leading 
journals of the East, and among other things said: 

' ' I have felt, because a great mass of the convicts 
of the South have been worked at outdoor employment 
that if they were badly treated they were not in the 
long run as badly off as our convicts in the North, who 
are contracted out to work in dingy, ill-ventilated and 
disease-breeding shops , where they are doomed to 
breathe poisoned air and almost entirely shut out from 
ever seeing a ray or sunshine. I was, however, quite un- 
prepared to find that the State of Louisiana has taken 
a step in the matter of dealing with convicted human- 
beings that easily places her a century ahead of the 
methods in common practice in the ordinary prisons 
North and South." 



T 



New Orleans—The Metropolis of the South. 



IIR XKW ORLEANS of to-day is not the New 
Orleans of yesterday. The stirring times which 
marked the history of the metropolis from its 
ver\' inception up to and including the year 1874 



have passed into history, and only their echoes occa- 
sionally revive the spirit of sentiment and cause the 
ripples to spread out upon a sea of retrospection and 
then quiet down to a more material realization of the 



102 



city, the position it occupies in the world of commerce, 
and the wonderful future which makes the horizon glow 
with all the radiance of a summer sunrise. 

First in the exportation of cotton and grain, and 
of rice shipments, and second among the great porta of 
the United States, New Orleans evidences her manifest 
destiny and makes positive the assertion of its people 
that her future commercially is "beyond the stars." 

From a health standpoint, the figures recently quoted 
by Dr. Quitman Kohnke, Health Officer of the City 
of New Orleans, shows that since the year 1880 there 
has been a slow but gradual recession in the mortality 
tables, for, including the population and mortality of 
the Charity Hospital, the death rate per annum was 22.96, 
while in 1902 these figures had decreased to 17.01; e.\- 
cluding the Charity Hospital deaths and the ratio in 1880 
was 19.86, while in 1902 the mortaliny had dropped to 
13.20. This is in the face of the unenviable reputation 
earned by New Orleans as a breeding place for yellow 
fever. The last outbreaks of this pest appearing in the 
years 1897-8 made the total mortality only 19.05 and 
18.86 respectively, and this in the face of the fact that 
there was practically no exodus on the part of its popu- 
lation. The obliteration of yellow fever from the port 
of Havana which has, from time immemorial, lieen a 
hot bed of "vomito, " means that modern sanitation and 
proper hygienic methods have, or will, obliterate the 
scourge from the face of the globe, and the success in 
Havana makes it beyond peradventure that New Orleans 
may lay claim to an absolute freedom from future visi- 
tations of the fever. 

Climatic conditions during the winter and summer 
are conducive to health, and it will be found upon even 
a cursory examination of the health statistics that New 



Orleans to-day may claim to be one of the healthiest 
cities in the New World. 

The postolfice cash receipts for the year 1903 ap- 
rpoximated $636,974.51, an increase of 45 per cent in 
the past five years, while the receipts of all mail matter 
show an increase of 60 per cent in the same period. 

With 215 miles of paved streets and a constant exten- 
sion of the system brought about by modern conditions 
and demands; the institution of what is possibly one of 
the finest electrical street car systems in the world, and 
the establishment of several first-class hotels, has placed 
New Orleans in the first rank among its competitors of 
the country generally and considerably in advance of 
the other cities of the South, all of which, however, are 
rapidly progressing to a splendid destiny. Modern steel- 
framed buildings have marked the passage of the last 
several years, and others now in progress indicate the 
strength of the confidence which is reposed in the city 
by outside capital, while the recent large additions made 
to several of the local banks by New Tork capitalists 
may be taken as additional testimony of this fact. 

Among the institutions now working energetically 
for the public good may be mentioned the New Orleans 
Progressive Union, which, with its 1,600 members, is 
undoubtedly the largest popular commercial body in the 
United States. Supported as it is by all classes of citi- 
zens and backed up by the best business blood and 
energy of New Orleans, this organization has been a 
power in local development, and has assumed a condition 
in the public mind and estimation that will continue its 
mission of good for years to come. By reason of its 
peculiar province it can, and does, with propriety, par- 
ticipate in all movements for the benefit of New Or- 
leans which would be impracticable to the purely trade 



103 



associations, with which the city is very liberally sup- 
plied. The business exchanges, in the material upbuild- 
ing of New Orleans, represent a potent factor in the 
progression. 

New Orleans leads all ports of the United States in 
its exports of grain and cotton. In 1903 she exceeded 
New York nearly .5,000,000 bushels of grain, and has 
outstripped all other ports, including Galveston, in the 
quantity of cotton handled, New Orleans forwarding 
2.380,431 bales. This report fully exemplifies the conten- 
tion which the people of New Orleans and of the West 
generally have made regarding the superior facilities of 
the Louisiana metropolis in the matter of all shipping. 
The superb natural harbor, well removed from the storms, 
and the conditions frequently put into being thereby; 
possessing a water front of fully thirty miles and some 
eight miles of magnificent wharves; permanent deep 
water and a freedom from the ordinary inconveniences 
which affect the other ports of the United States, New 
Orleans is justly entitled to the distinction it claims 
■ for itself and which actual conditions have manifested. 
Prior to the war, the port of New Orleans was 
easily tlie first port in the United States from all points 
of view. The fact that the commodities of the Missis- 
sippi Valley were handled by sailing vessels, made the 
individual carrier a prominent factor in the commercial 
develojiment of the city, and thousands of this character 
of craft frequented the harbor at all seasons of the year, 
conveying practically the entire cotton crop of the South 
and the sugar of Louisiana, to distant markets, and 
bringing in return articles of import destined for con- 
sumption or use by the entire population along the Mis- 
sissippi River, its tributary streams and contiguous 
territory. 



The vicissitudes of the war, the practical oblitera- 
tion of the merchant marine, and the transfer of the 
American shipping to foreign control, naturally operated 
to the vast detriment of the Mississippi Eiver port. The 
revival of the shipping industry, the rapid increase of 
trade which followed the close of the war, and the de- 
velopment of the rail arteries of commerce, gradually 
caused New Orleans to assume its old position, although 
the rapid development of the Atlantic coast ports natur- 
ally precluded the supremacy which the Louisiana city 
once enjoyed in the direction indicated. New Orleans 
is possibly better located, as a port of entry and place 
of export, than any of its competitors of the Gulf Coast, 
or any of the ports of the Atlantic Seaboard. 

This is due to the fact that railroads centering in 
New Orleans, ramifying with their direct lines, their 
aflSliating lines and their connections, every important 
section south of the Ohio River; the entire Mississippi 
Valley as far north as Minnesota, and the great grain 
and cotton region of the infinite West. Sixteen thousand 
miles of navigable waterways and a rail mileage of 
nearly thirty thousand miles, coupled with the cheap 
rates this combination places in effect, is responsible for 
the rapid growth of the city's commerce and the envi- 
able position it occupies in the shipping world. 

During the fiscal year ended June 30th, 1903, there 
entered and cleared in the port of New Orleans, coast- 
wise and foreign, 2,677 ships, with a total tonnage of 
4,569,273. These totals, while a trifle less than the pre- 
ceding year, were due to a decrease in the production of 
grain and cotton, which decrease was shared in, to a 
much greater extent, by the other ports of the United 
States. 



104 



The total business of New Orleans of all kinds 
covering the same period, was as follows: 

Received. Value. 

Receipts from the interior hy river and rail. .$191,523,312 

Imports, coastwise 68,480,026 

Imports, foreign 28,914„556 

Total receipts .$288,917,994 

Shipped. Value. 

Shipped to interior by river and rail $ 85,417,665 

Exports, coastwise 55,212,346 

Exports, foreign 145,893,764 

Total of shipments $286,523,777 

Grand Total of trade $575,441,669 

During the period referred to above. New Orleans 
increased its total trade over 1899-1900 in the sum of 
$26,568,324. 

The total railroad tonnage handled by the Southern 
Paciiic, Texas Pacific, Illinois Central, Yazoo & Missis- 
sippi Valley, Louisville & Nashville, New Orleans & 
Northeastern and minor roads, aggregated 7,800,000 tons, 
same representing the quantities received and forwarded. 

The total domestic exports for the twelve months 
ending July 31st, 1903, represent $148,609,629, which 
does not include $2,145,133, covering exports through 
New Orleans to the ports of Porto Rico. 

During the same period, cotton in the sum of 
992,905,855 pounds, with a valuation of $82,000,000, was 
exported to the countries of E\irope, Mexico, Japan, and 
the British East Indies. 

In this connection it must be borne in mind that the 
regular lines of communication between New Orleans 
and the ports of the world are represented by thirty 



steamship lines, many of tliem using vessels capable of 
carrying 30,000 bales of cotton, and having a net ton- 
nage of 7,500 tons. 

Regular lines of coniniunication have been estab- 
lished between the ports of the United States and the 
ports of Porto Rico, while regular sailings to Cuban 
ports or Central American ports have been a feature of 
the business of New Orleans for a great many years. 

Owing to its proximity to the great coffee producing 
area of the tropics. New Orleans last year handled 
150,000,000 puunils of coffee, reshipping a large percent- 
age of this to the consuming centers of the Mississippi 
Valley, the Trans-Mississippi country and other portions 
of the South. The city also handled 321,000,000 pounds 
of sugar which was imported cliiefly from the Islands 
of Cuba and one or two of the coast cities of the Repub- 
lic of Mexico. 

The imports generally show a very gratifying in- 
crease, and the possibilities arc that these figures will 
be materially enlarged when tlie figures for the next 
fiscal year are made public. 

As an indication of the value of its imports, it may 
be stated that for the year ending July 31st, 1903, the 
customs receipts of this port were .$7,630,941, and articles 
free of duty were imported in the sum of $14,011,988. 

During the same period, 11,000,000 pounds of lemons; 
284,000 square yards of mattin;,r; 18,000,000 pounds of 
salt, and nearly 300,000 pounds of leaf tobacco were im- 
ported; 7,000,000 bunches of bananas and 7,000,000 cocoa- 
nuts were imported from the tropical ports and reshipped 
-to all portions of the West and the great Mississippi 
Valley. 

It is also through the jiort of New Orleans that the 
great bulk of the mahogany imported into this counti'y 



106 



is handled. This beautiful wood is converted by the 
manufacturers of the West and North into handsome 
furniture, and reshipped into all portions of the South 
in its finished condition, it commanding high prices owing 
to its superiority over all other woods. The Spanish 
cedar, logwood, a variety of dye woods, and an immense 
amount of raw rubber is handled through New Orleans 
intended for distribution to other .portions of the United 
States. 

In connection with the rice industry and the possi- 
bilities contained therein as a matter of export, it may 
be of interest to know that the rice fields of southwest 
Louisiana and southern Texas have revolutionized the 
industry, so far as the United States is concerned. New 
Orleans, during the twelve months ending July 31st, 
1903, handled nearly 2,500,000 barrels of rough rice, 
weighing from 162 to 181 pounds per barrel, reducing to 
pockets of one hundred pounds of first-class clean rice. 

The total production of Louisiana and Texas last 
year was in the neighborhood of 4,500,000 bags or bar- 
rels. Owing to the stringency in the rice supplies of 
Porto Eico and the Philippine Islands, large quantities 
of Louisiana rice were shipped for consumption in these 
two countries last year. 

An indication of the rapid increase in the port facili- 
ties and the general business of New Orleans may be 
found in the bank clearings of the city. For the year 
1903 the bank clearings approximated $827,710,850, an 
increase over the previous year of $155,350,273, the post- 
office cash receipts showed an increase of 47 per cent 
since 1897, while the receipts of all mail showed an in- 
crease of 60 per cent covering the same period. 

The city contains 1,700 manufacturing enterprises 
with a capital of $60,000,000, employing 25,000 persons 



and producing 175 different articles with a total value 
of nearly $70,000,000 per annum. The value of the cot- 
ton seed oil products is $5,000,000 annually. 

Last year $100,000 was spent by the United States 
Government for harbor improvements, and the same 
amount will be expended by the end of the present year. 

The city is erecting a system of steel sheds to care 
for the commodities handled both for export and import, 
these sheds being under the direction of the Dock Com- 
mission. 

The recent improvement of terminals by several of 
the great railway trunk lines has secured a compara- 
tively free dockage for vessels which make use of these 
terminals and this will prove a material factor in shap- 
ing the ultimate destinj' of the port of New Orleans. 

A very gratifying feature of the improvement of 
the harbor of New Orleans may be found in the appro- 
priation of nearly $3,000,000. This money is to be applied 
to the harbor direct and to the mouth of the river. The 
, entrance through the jetties at present commands a 
depth of nearly 29 feet, and it is the intention of the 
United States engineers to extend this depth so as to 
permit vessels drawing 35 feet of water, if needs be, to 
enter the river and ascend to the city of New Orleans. 

The improvement also contemplates the deepening 
of Southwest Pass, which will be done through a system 
of deep dredging. This mouth of the river has, it is 
considered, remarkable advantages and it is believed will 
scour itself to a sufficient depth within a few years to 
admit vessels of any possible draft. 

By the sale of bonds, $12,000,000 has been realized 
and an additional sum of $5,836,000 wlil accrue to the 
hond issue by revenues received from other sources. 
This grand aggregate will be expended in furnishing the 



106 



city of New Orleans with a complete system of water, 
sewerage and drainage, and contracts were made but a 
few days since covering the immediate expenditure of 
$1,500,000. 

The entire matter will not be finally concluded before 
1908, but when the same shall have been finished, New 
Orleans will have an absolute perfect hygienic and sani- 
tary system of sewerage and drainage, and one which 
will command the admiration and attention of the entire 
country. 

The social life of New Orleans, while differing but 
little in regard to its general aspects from the other 
large cities of the United States, has a number of dis- 
tinctive and characteristic features which go far towards 
making its social institutions and functions peculiarly 
delightful. 

Naturally the great social feature of New Orleans 
is the "Mardi Gras, " and in this distinction New Or- 
leans has achieved a fame which has not been, and is 
not, limited by boundary or country. 

This Mardi Gras is conceded by all who have wit- 
nessed it to be the most unique festival of the new 
world, and to-day its brilliant proportions exceed even 
the similar celebrations which have made the cities of 
Florence, Rome and Venice by-words in the mouth of 
Europe. Nowhere else could the Mardi Gras prosper. 
Nowhere else can the spirit of the occasion find its being 
and animate the hearts of a half million persons, as it 
does in the Crescent City during the festival week. In 
this spirit does the many colored celebrations live and 
grow. It is no cold, calculating entertainment, but it 
is the outcome of a century's effort in which the warm 
hearts of a semi-tropical population play a most impor- 
tant part. 



Containing many first-class social organizations; pro- 
vided with handsome hotels; possessing a half dozen 
modern, up-to-date theatres, including the celebrated old 
French Opera House, and, in addition to the constantly 
changing attractions, a brilliant season of French Opera, 
it follows that New Orleans must, during three-fourths 
of the year, contain an element of attraction for almost 
any individual alive. 

Its climatic conditions, making it a city of the "out 
of doors," even when the remainder of the country is 
winter bound, combine to make it a favorite resort for 
persons living north and east who find the winters of 
their own particular section arduous and unbearable. 

As a winter resort. New Orleans is easily the most 
delightful city in the entire country; as, in addition to 
natural features which make it possible for the visitor 
to enjoy the climate under clear blue skies it possesses 
every element of modern existence which the man or 
woman of wealth or culture enjoys. 

Society in New Orleans is naturally hospitable, as 
that being a feature of its individual life could not fail 
to become a part of its social existence. The entire 
winter is characterized by a brilliant round of social 
functions in which the various social organizations play 
a distinct part. 

Another feature of New Orleans, which has proved 
the means of attracting a large winter attendance, is 
found in the one hundred days of winter racing. The 
New Orleans Meeting, under the auspices of the New 
Orleans Jockey Club, has for years been attaining a 
degree of excellence, until to-day the winter season of 
New Orleans is proving an attraction too potent to be 
disregarded by the lovers of this character of amuse- 
ment. 



107 



Possessing two magnificent parks, and unexcelled 
methods of rapid transit, with a score of smaller breath- 
ing spots; two splendid i-esorts on Lake Pontchartrain, 
and but a short distance from the best salt water fishing 
and hunting grounds in the South, it follows that the 
visitor, either summer or winter, may find much to 
amuse or entertain. 

NEW ORLEANS AND THE ISTHMIAN CANAL. 

The definite establishment of the Panama Canal 
route has naturally attracted considerable attention on 
the part of the United States to New Orleans, because 
of that port 's proximity to the proposed water way and 
its magnificent rail and water connections with the Mis- 
sissippi Valley and the States of the entire Trans-Mis- 
sissippi country. 

New Orleans, the second port of the country, will 
undoubtedly leap into a wonderful prominence and pros- 
perity by reason of the construction of the Isthmian 
Canal, and this fact is recognized by the railroad lines 
leading into that city, having north and south connec- 
tions and penetrating that vast territory west of a line 
drawn through Chicago, Indianapolis, Frankfort, Ky., 
and Charleston, this tremendous area being nearer New 
Orleans than to New York, and in a position to do busi- 
ness through the great southern port to all portions of 
the world, and particularly with the Central American 
and Pacific States and Countries. 

A comjiarisou of the following table of distances will 
exhibit at once the advantage of New Orleans over its 
com))etitors in relation to business routed through the 
canal and indicates the possibilities of trade through that 
port. 



From To Colifti. 

Boston 2,16u miles. 

New York 1,981 ' ' 

Philadelphia 1,960 ' ' 

Norfolk ■ .■ 1,779 " 

Charleston _. , 1,580 ' ' 

Savannah 1,586 ' ' 

Galveston 1,481 ' ' 

Port Arthur 1,465 " 

New Orleans 1,380 " 

According to these figures New Orleans is 601 miles 
nearer Colon than is New York; and 101 miles nearer 
than Galveston, the two great competitors of the Louis- 
iana seaport. 

Dr. Emory E. Johnson, in the report of the Isthmiam 
Canal Commission, in a discussion of the subject, among 
other things, says that, ''while distance is not the only 
factor in determining the direction in which trafiie will 
move, passing through the canal, it will be one factor, 
and undoubtedly the proximity of the industrial centers 
of the Central States to the Gulf cities, will greatly 
assist those ports and the railways leading to them in 
securing a large share of the South American and Pacific 
trade. The Gulf ports have the advantage of being able 
to bring railway cars and steamers, side by side at 
capacious terminals, at which freight can be handled 
very economically, and this advantage will probably 
assist the commercial progress of New Orleans and other 
cities in their efforts to command Pacific Ocean traffic." 

The position of New Orleans, in direct touch with 
the great cotton producing and lumber areas of the 
South, and being the southern termiual of several of the 
great rail lines penetrating the grain fields of the West, 
will naturally redound to its advantage. The industrial 



108 



centers of the Mississippi, Ohio and Missouri Valleys, 
being nearer to New Orleans than to any of the ports 
of the East and North Atlantic, it may be considered 
as among the probabilities, that the factory products of 
these sections will, in addition to the agricultural pro- 
ducts, find their way for export through New Orleans. 

The determination of the Southern Railway, Frisco 
and Eock Isand systems to combine in the purchase of 
the great terminal property, owned originally by the 
Port Chalmette Company, and the work, now going on, 
of bringing the Frisco-Bock Island into New Orleans, is 
undoubtedly due to a recognition of the position occupied 
by New Orleans in relation to the Panama Canal. These 
terminals, with subsequent purchases, represent several 
million dollars, but they give to the combine a complete 
control of over three miles of river front within the 
commercial area of New Orleans and places it in a com- 
manding position to control trade when the business be- 
gins to move. Good judgment and a recognition of 
what the next decade will bring forth, undoubtedly domi- 
nated the action of the combine, but this action will 
assist in making New Orleans one of the finest shipping 
points in the United States, as well as adding to its 
commerce the traiBc of three of the most extensive rail- 
way systems in the South and "West. 

In a consideration of the situation as regards New 
Orleans and the Isthmian Canal, it must be remembered 
that the port in question is in a position to command a 
large portion of the cotton export business, fully fifty- 
four per cent of the staple being grown in fields almost 
contiguous to the city. The bulk of the cotton goods 



exported chiefly to China and .Japan goes via New York, 
although much of it is manufactured by Southern mills, 
reaching its destination through the Suez canal. With 
the construction of the canal, the commodities will more 
naturally find their way to destination via the new 
route. 

Direct lumber shipments from New Orleans and 
near-by ports will also make up considerable of the ex- 
ports to the Pacific Coast of South and Central America, 
while Southern fertilizer will find nearer markets in 
Hawaii and on the Pacific, the raw materials from Chili 
being placed in our own markets at a much cheaper rate. 
So, too, will the exportation of packing house products 
materially increase through New Orleans for points in 
the Orient and on the Pacific as well as to South 
America. 

The value of the canal will be incalculable to New 
Orleans, and to the South generally. It will ally the vast 
central areas of this country with New Orleans, making 
It the half-way house for both exports and imports, and 
the new conditions will undoubtedly place the Southern 
ports in a better position to control their legitimate share 
of the imports, which now enter this country through 
Xew York and San Francisco. 

Work has commenced on the canal and the rail lines 
will be the first influences to contribute to the supremacy 
of New Orleans, for with an eye always open to trade 
possibilities, they will be compelled to maintain every 
possible convenience in order to secure a share of the 
tremendous traflic which will be handled through the 
greatest port in the South. 



109 



Shreveport. 



SHREVEPOET, the metropolis of North Louisiana, 
is situated on the Bed River, in Caddo Parish, the 
northwest corner parish of the State, adjoining 
Texas and Arliansas. The city has a population 
of about 30,000, and no other in the State has grown so 
rapidly within the past five years. In the spring of 
1902, because of glaring errors made in the enumeration 
taken by the United States census takers, its citizens 
made an enumeration of their own, which was duly at- 
tested in an aiEdavit signed by the then mayor, Ben- 
jamin Holzman, in which the city was given a popula- 
tion of 24,364. So rapidly has it grown within the past 
two years that there are known to be fully 30,000 in- 
habitants there to-daj'. Seven railroad systems bring 
eleven diflferent lines of railroad into Shreveport, and 
the Red River, being navigable the year round, affords 
the city over 1,000 miles of tributary coast line, making 
it one of the most important distributing points in the 
entire South. 

Shreveport has the best gas and electric lighting 
systems of any city of its size, perhaps, in the South. 
Natural gas abounds and is being used for ilUimination. 
Its electric railway system of eleven miles cannot well 
be surpassed. There are 6.7 miles of paved streets and 
a new, first-class sewer system of over nine miles. There 
are two telephone systems, more large office buildings, 
more and better hotels than in any city of its size any- 
whers in the South. The waterworks svstem is most 



adequate, and the chemical examination shows that the 
water is purer than any furnished to other cities in the 
Gulf States. The public school system is most excellent, 
culminating in a splendid new High School. All the dif- 
ferent religious denominations are represented with one 
or more churches. 

The rate of mortality for white and negro population 
is 15.76 per thousand, less than that of the city of 
Chicago, which is 16.3, which is lower than the rate 
of any other large city in the Union. The white mor- 
tality rate of Shreveport is only 9. The money to build 
a large garbage crematory has been provided by the City 
Council, and the contract for construction already let. 
While Shreveport has many factories, among which are 
three breweries, many cotton compreses and cotton oil 
mills and a large number of manufacturing concerns that 
use cotton and wood, there is still room for many more, 
and the citizens of Shreveport have banded together 
in an organization called the Shreveport Progressive 
League for the purpose of securing them, inducing immi- 
gration into this community and obtaining additional 
commercial and industrial enterprises of all sorts. 

Through the concerted efforts of its citizens it has 
been proven that both cigar filler and cigar wrapper 
tobacco, as good as that grown in the Vuelta Abajo dis- 
trict of Cuba, can be grown here, while a concern, the 
Edler Cigar Company, has been organized and is manu- 
facturing cigars from this tobacco in Shreveport. 



110 



Baton Rouge. 



Baton Eouge, population U. S. census 1900, 11,260; 
fity directory 190-1, 19,890, situated on the first bluffs of 
the Mississippi River, is the third city in size in the 
State. It is the capitol of the State, and here, besides 
the handsome State capitol building, are located the 
State Penitentiary, the Deaf and Dumb Institute, and 
the State School for the Blind. It is one of the finest 
located cities in the world; on a bluff from sixty to 
seventy feet high, overlooking the river, and with a 
natural drainage basin. It has three railroads completed 
and several projected. It has three banks and one local 
insurance company, all doing a profitable business. 

It has two large brickyards, two immense lumber 
mills, one hoop factory, one barrel factory, two steam 
laundries, one large central sugar factory, one oar factory, 
one spoke factory, one box factory, one refrigerating 



plant and one ice plant, besides one cotton seed oil 
mill and one fertilizer factory. It is one of the best 
locations for manufactures in the State. Being on the 
Mississippi River, it enjoys the benefits of low freights, 
both for the raw m.aterial and the manufactured products. 

It is situated in one of the richest sections of the 
State, and does a thriving mercantile trade. 

The State University and Agricultural and Mechani- 
cal College is situated here, and is largely attended. 

The State Experiment Station is also located here, 
and its investigations are published in bulletins, which 
are distributed free to any applicant. 

The health is excellent; the people refined and cul- 
tivated. 

It is surrounded by a country splendidly adapted to 
truck growing, market gardening, and stock raising. 



New Iberia. 



New Iberia, situated on the banks of the beautiful 
Bayou Teche, is a thriving little city of 6,815 inhabi- 
tants. It is the center of a rich agricultural section, 
sugar being the principal crop. It has three banks, 
three large lumber mills, brick factory, cotton-seed oil 
mill, rice mill, several foundries, excellent schools, elec- 



tric lights, waterworks, and a progressive and intelligent 
citizenship. The Southern Pacific Railroad and Bayou 
Teche furnish adequate transportation facilities for the 
commerce of the city. In addition to its main line, the 
Southern Pacific has a branch from New Iberia to the 
salt mines. 



Ill 



Lake Charles. 



Lake Charles has 6,680 inhabitants. It is the center 
of the largest lumber manufacturing interests in the 
Southern States. The mills are modern, automatic, and 
of large capacity. Has the largest rice mill in the 
United States. Has steam mill for sash, doors and wood- 
working. There is one fence factory, two foundries, 
one ditfusion sugar factory, one brickyard, two steam 
laundries, and ear shops. There are three public school 
buildings and one college, twelve churches, of all de- 
nominations, two daily and five weekly newspapers, three 
banks, twelve miles of street railwav. Has an extensive 



electric system; electric lights, waterworks, and ice 
plant. There are three trunk lines connecting the town 
with all the great markets of the West and South, North 
and East : The Southern Pacific Railway, Kansas City 
Southern and Kansas City, Watkins and Gulf. On the 
east and south of the town are fertile prairies, while 
on the north 'are splendid pine timber lands. The Cal- 
casieu Eiver passes by the city, and is about 600 feet 
broad and 60 feet deep. At the outlet the United States 
(iovernment is now constructing jetties, which will make 
Calcasieu Harbor one of the finest on the Mexican Gulf. 



Alexattdria. 



Alexandria, on the Red Eiver, is the geographical 
center of the State, and the principal city of Middle 
Louisiana. It has a population of 5,648 and is the third 
largest railroad center in the State, having six railroad 
sj'stems. It is surrounded by one of the richest agricul- 
tural sections in the world, the Valley of the Red River, 
which has gained for itself the sobriquet of "the Valley 
of the Red Nile." It has four banks, a cotton compress, 
two cotton-seed oil mills, two bottling works, two steam 
laundries, five planing mills, a large sawmill, iron foun- 



dry, coffee roasting, brick factory, ice factory, feed mill 
and canning factory. Within a radius of fifty miles of 
Alexandria there are forty-five sawmills, with a daily 
output of over two million feet of lumber. The city 
owns and controls its own electric light plant and its 
waterworks. It has a fifty-thousand-dollar High School 
building, hundred-thousand-dollar Courthouse, nine miles 
of sewerage, seventy thousand square yards of asphalt 
paving, seven blocks of vitrified lirick and twenty-three 
blocks of graveled streets. 



Monroe. 



This City (i)opulatiou U. S. Census 1900, 5,428; 
City Directory 1904, 16,208) situated in the northern part 
of the State has three banks; two building and loan asso- 



ciations; two compresses two bottling works; two ma- 
chine shops; two oil mills; four lumber mills; three 
shingle mills; three sash and door factories; one fifty 



112 



ton ice plant; one molasses factory; one cotton mill; one 
brick plant; eleven wholesale establishments to look 
after jobbing interests; V., 8. & P. railroarl shops; St. L., 
I .M. & S. Ry. shops and <livision terminals; twelve miles 
sanitary sewer; paved and graveled streets; electric 
street car line; fire-proof city market; large and hand- 
some chnrch buildings of all denominations. Monroe and 
Little Rock Railroad, and Monroe and Southwestern Rail- 
road, both have their headquarters at Monroe. The city 



and parish high school liuildings as fine as any in the 
State; tuition absolutely free. Stock raising and truck 
farming in this parish are proving profitable and a 
great success. Fruit of all kinds can be grown in abund- 
ance. Water practically pure. Health will compare with 
any city its size. North or West, and we invite the closest 
scrutiny of health conditions. 

For any information write, the Monroe Progressive 
League, and j'ou will receive prompt reply. 



Louisiana's Railroads. 



THERE are in Louisiana over 7,000 miles of oper- 
ated mileage of railroads, reaching all portions of 
the State, ■ and affording cjuick transportation. 
Many of these roads are the great trunk lines of 
the North, and run direct trains to the great cities of 
the North and West. Probably no intJuence in Louisiana 
has been more far reaching than the generous and 
liberal attitude of the railroads in encouraging immi- 
grants to come into Louisiana. We find the country 
along these lines building up rapidly with thriving 
towns and prosperous people. Fast daily trains connect 
the truck growing sections of the State with Northern 
markets, and this industry has grown to enormous pro- 
portions along the lines of the Illinois Central, the Kan- 
sas City, Watkins and Gulf, and is being developed 
along all the north and south railroads running through 
Louisiana. 
The Illinois Central System. 

This system has two trunk lines extending from the 



City of New Orleans. The eastern line enters the State 
of Mississippi near Osyka. 

It passes through five parishes of this State, the 
stations l)eing New Orleans; Sauve and Kenner, .Jeffer- 
son Parish; Frenier and Manchac, St. John's Parish; and 
Ponchatoula, Hammond, Tickfaw, Independence, Amite 
City, Areola, Tangipahoa and Kentwood, in Tangipahoa 
Parish. 

This route penetrates the States of Mississippi, Ten- 
nessee, Kentucky, Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, Iowa, Wiscon- 
sin and South Dakota, and touches the borders of Ar- 
kansas, Missouri, Nebraska and Minnesota. The western 
line of this system, or the Yazoo and Mississippi Valley 
Railroad, e.\tends along or near the Mississippi River 
from New Orleans to Memphis, Tenn., having two tap 
lines in Louisiana, and a number of branch roads in 
Mississi])pi. 

It passes through ten parishes in this State, the fol- 
lowing being the most important stations along the line: 



113 



New Orleans, in Orleans parish; Kenner, Jefferson parish; 
Sarpy, St. Charles parish; St. Peters and Bonnet Carre, 
St. John parish; Angelina and Convent, St. James parish; 
Burnside, New River and Lane PostotHce, Ascension 
parish; Iberville and St. Gabriel, Iberville parish; Gar- 
dere. Baton Rouge, Baker and Zaehary, East Baton 
Rouge parish; Slaughter, Lindsay, Ethel, Clinton, Wil- 
son and Norwood, East Feliciana parish, and Bayou 
Sara and Laurel Hill in West Feliciana parish. 

The Queen and Crescent System. 

The Queen and Crescent System embraces the New 
Orleans and Northeastern, and the Vicksburg, Shreve- 
port and Pacific lines, which extend through the State. 

The New Orleans and Northeastern passes through 
two parishes. Tlie important stations are. New Orleans, 
Slidell and West Pearl River stations, in St. Tammany 
parish. It enters the State of Mississippi at East Pearl 
River. ' 

The Vicksburg, Shreveport and Pacific line extends 
from Vicksburg, Miss., to Shreveport, and passes through 
eight parishes, having connections from Gibbs' Station 
to Homer; from Gibbs' Station to Bienville, and from 
Sibley or Minden .Junction to Minden. 

The most important are Delta, Tallulah, Barnes, Dal- 
las and Waverly, in Madison parish; Delhi, Rayville and 
Girard, in Richland parish; Gordon, Monroe, Cheniere 
and Calhoun, in Ouachita parish; Chondrant, Ruston, 
Allen, Greene and Simsboro, in Lincoln parish; New 
Arcadia, Gibbs, Taylors and Bienville, in Bienville 
parish; Homer, in Claiborne parish; Dubberly, Sibley, 
Do3'le and Minden, in Webster parish; Houghton and 
Bodcaw, in Bossier parish; and Shreveport, in Caddo 
parish. 

The East Louisiana Bailroad extemls from West 



Pearl River Station, on the New Oleans and Northeastern 
line of the Queen and Crescent route, to Covington, and 
lies within St. Tammany parish. Its principal stations 
are West Pearl River, Abita and Covington, and it passes 
through the heart of the famous "ozone" belt. 
The Louisville and Nashville Route. 

This great trunk line penetrates the States of Mis- 
sissippi, Alabama, Tennessee, Kentucky and Illinois. It 
passes through two parishes and enters the State of Mis- 
sissippi at the mouth of Pearl River. 

The statons along this line are New Orleans, Lee, 
Gentilly, Chef Menteur, Lake Catherine and Rigolets, 
in Orleans parish, and Lookout, in St. Tammany parish. 
The Texas and Pacific Koute. 

The Texas .ind Pacific Railway extends from New 
Orleans in a northwestern direction, and enters the State 
of Texas near Waskom Station. It has five branch roads 
in the State: Cypress to Lake End, Mansfield Junction 
to Mansfield. Bunkie to Marksville and Simmsport, Baton 
Rouge .Junction to Farriday .Junction, and Donaldsonville 
to Thibodaux. The branch from Baton Rouge .Junction 
to Farrid.ay Junction, will, as soon as a connecting link 
is made, be a part of the main line of the new Gould 
line (Memphis, Helena and New Orleans Railroad), St. 
Louis to New Orleans. 

This route passes through nineteen parishes; the 
principal stations are. New Orleans, in Orleans parish; 
Gouldsboro and Gretna, in Jefferson parish; Davis, St. 
Charles and Dugan, St. Charles parish; St. John and 
.Johnson, St. John parish; Vacherie, Delogney, St. James 
and Winchester, St. James parish; Thibodaux, Lafourche 
parish; Napoleonville, Assumption parish; Donaldson- 
ville and McCalls, Ascension parish; White Castle, Bayou 
Goula, Indian Village, Plaquemine and Gross Tete, Iber- 



114 



ville parish; Baton Rouge Junction, Brusly Landing, 
Port Allen and Lobdell, West Baton Eouge parish; Mar- 
ingouin, Fordoche, New Roads and Torras, Pointe Coupee 
parish; Blaekhawk and Farriday Junction, Concordia 
parish; Melville, Rosa and Morrows, St. Landry parish; 
Bunkie, Cottonport, Mansura, Marksville and Simmes- 
port, Avoyelles parish; Cheney ville, Lecompte, Moreland, 
Alexandria and Boyee, Rapides parish; Cypress, Proven- 
cal, Robeline and Natchitoches parish; Lake Fnd, Red 
River parish; Sodus, Sabine parish; Oxford, Mansfield, 
Grand Cane, Glosterand Stonewall, De Soto parish; and 
Keithville, Reisor, Shreveport, Jewella, Becks and Green- 
wood, in I'addo parish. 
The Southern Pacific Route. 

This line extends from New Orleans in a westerly 
direction, and has the following branches leading from 
the main line: From Sehriever to Thibodaux and Napo- 
leonville, from Sehriever to Houma, from Baldwin Sta- 
tion to Weeks Island, from New Iberia to Petit Anse 
Island (or Avery's Salt Mines), another to Abbeville, 
and another from Cade 's Station to St. Martinville and 
Breaux Bridge,, and an extensive line from Lafayette to 
Cheneyville, connecting there with the Texas and Pacific 
Route, and from Crowley to Eunice, in St. Landry parish, 
and to Gueydan and Lake Arthur in Vermillion. The 
Southern Pacific passes through thirteen parishes, and 
the main line enters the State of Texas at Echo Station, 
on the Sabine River. 

The most important stations in this State are, New 
Orleans; Gretna, Powell, Murragh and Jefferson, in Jef- 
ferson parish; Boutte and des AUemands, St. Charles 
parish; Raceland, E wings, Bousseau, Sehriever and 
Thibdaux, Lafourche parish; Napoleonville, Assumption 
parish; Houma, Chacahoula and Tigerville, Terrebonne 



parish; Gibson and Boeuf, Assumption parish; Ramos, 
Morgan City, Berwick, Patterson, Ricohoc, Baygu Sale, 
Franklin, Baldwin, Glencoe, Cypremort and Sorrell, St. 
Mary parish; Jeanerette, Olivier, New Iberia, Petit Anse, 
Segura and Burkes, Iberia parish; Cades, St. Martinsville 
and Breaux 's Bridge, St. Martin parish; Duchamp, Brous- 
sard, Lafayette, Scott, and Carenero, Lafayette parish; 
Duson, Rayne, Crowley, Estherwood and Mermentau, 
Acadia parish; Jennings, Evangeline, Welch, Lacassine, 
Iowa, Chloe, Lake Charles, West Lake, Lock Moore, Sul- 
phur Mine, Edgerly, Vinton, Sabine, Jacksonville and 
Echo, Calcasieu parish; Grand Coteau, Bellevue, Opelou- 
sas, Washington, Beggs, Garland, Whiteville and Bar- 
breek, St. Landry parish; Milburn, Avoyelles parish, and 
Eola, Haasville and Cheneyville, in Rapides parish. 

A branch line from Lafayette to Baton Rouge is 
now in course of construction. 

St. Louis, Watkins and Gulf Eailroad. 

This line extends from Alexandria to Watkins, sit- 
uated on the Gulf of Mexico, at the Calcasieu Pass. It 
has branch roads leading from Bon Air to Lake Charles 
and Grand Lake. It passes through three parishes, and 
its most important stations are, Alexandria, Anandale, 
Vilderouge, Forest Hill and Glenmora, in Rapides parish; 
Oakdale, Oberlin, Kinder, Fenton, Iowa, Bon Air and 
Lake Charles, in Calcasieu parish; and Grand Lake and 
Watkins, in Cameron parish. 

The St. Louis, Iron Motintain and Southern Railroad. 

This road extends from Alexamlria, in a northeastern 
direction, and enters the State of Arkansas in the north- 
eastern portion of Morehouse. It passes through six 
parishes, and its most important stations are: Alexandria, 
in Rapides parish; Pollock and Dugdemona, Grant parish; 



115 



Tiillos and Olla, Catahoula parish; Kelly, Grayson, 
Bridges, Columbia, Riverton and Eureka, Caldwell parish; 
Boser, Caplin, Monroe and Sicard, Ouachita parisli,and 
Collins, Doss, Mer Rouge, Gallon, Bonita and Jones, in 
Morehouse parish. 

Houston and Shreveport Railroad. 

This line i>f railway extends in a southwestern direc- 
tion from yhreveport, and enters the State of Texas at 
Logansport, on the Sabine River. It passes through two 
parishes, and the principal stations are, Shreveport, Laro- 
sen and Keithville, in Caildo parish; and Preston, Kent- 
cliie, Longstreet and Logansport, in De Scdo parish. 

The St. Louis and Southwestern, or St. Louis, Arkan- 
sas and Texas Railroad, extends northward from Shreve- 
port, anil enters the State of Arkansas at Rudge Station, 
Bossier parish. The important stations are. Shady Grove, 
Benton, .Alder, Gernsheim and Rudge, all in Bossier 
parish. 

Memphis, Helena and New Orleans Railroad. 

This road is generally known as the new Gould line, 
St. Louis to New Orleans. When completed it will run 
from the Iron Mountain main line to Farriday Junction, 
where a junction is made with the Texas and Pacific 
Railroad. This road will then furnish a through line, 
St. Louis to New Orleans. It will be operated under the 
Missouri Pacific system. The principal stations on the 
line are: Lake Providence, in East Carroll parish; Tal- 
lulah, Madison parish; St. .Toseph, Tensas parish; and 
I'^arridav .lunction, in ( 'oncorclia i)arisli. 

Louisiana Railway and Navigation Company. 

This company has a line from Shreveport to the 
Atchafalaya River, and from Bayou Ford to Baton 
Rouge. About August 1, liKI.*), this ciim]iany will operate 



tlirough service, .Shreveport to Baton Rouge, and in al)out 
twelve months will inaugurate through service, Shreve- 
port to New Orleans, construction ha\"iug already been 
begun on route from Baton Rouge to New Orleans. This 
company also has three branch lines, one connecting 
Natchitoches with main line, one from Campti to Chest- 
nut, and one from Colfax Junction to Winnfield. 

The principal stations along the completed line are: 
Baton Rouge, Irene and Port Hudson, in East Baton 
Rouge parish; Bayou Sara and Angola, West Feliciana 
parish; Kleinwood, Bordelonville and Mansura, Avoy- 
elles parish; Poland, Richland, Alexandria and Pineville, 
Rapides parish; C.olfax, Grant parish; Atlanta and Winn- 
field, Winn parish; Chestnut, Campti and Natchitoches. 
Natchitoches parish; Coushatta, Red River parish; -At- 
kins, Bossier parish; and Shreveport, Caddo parish. 

Kansas City Southern Railroad. 

This line extends from Lake Charles to Kansas City. 
It has two branches. The principal stations are: Lake 
Charles, Westlake, Starks, Bon Ami and De Quincey, in 
Calcasieu parish; Leesville and Orange, in Vernon parish; 
Fisher and Zwolle, Sabine parish; Mansfield and Frier- 
son. De Soto parish; and Shreveport and Blanchard, 
Caddo parish. 

The New Orleans and Northwestern Railroad. 

This line extends from Natchez to Collins' Station, 
on the St. Louis, Iron Mountain and Southern Railroad, 
and passes through five parishes. The most important 
are Vidalia, Concordia, Frogmore and Ten.sas, in Con- 
cordia parish; Greenville, Wildwood, Florence and Pecks, 
in Catahoula ])arish; Bryan, Gilbert and Winnsboro, in 
Franklin parish; .Archibald and Rayvillc, in Richland 
jiarish, and Collins, in Morehouse. 



116 



The Natchez, Red River and Texas Narrow Gauge 

Railroad. 

This line extends from Vidalia to Trinit.y, throiij;1i 
Concdrdia parish. Principal stations, Vidalia, Sycaniore 
and Trinity, in I 'onc-ordia parish. 
The Mississippi, Terre-aux-Boeufs and Lake Railroad. 

This line extends down along the eastern eoast of 
tlie Mississippi River to Bohemia. It has a branch line 
from St. Bernar<l Station to Shell Beach, on Lake Borgne, 
and passes througli three parishes. The stations are. 
New Orleans and .Tacksonborough, in Orleans parish: 
Versailles, Arabi, Poydras, St. Bernard, Toca, Kenil- 
worth, Reggio, Florisant and Shell Beach, in St. Bernard 
|)arish; and English Turn, St. ("lair, Stella, Mary, Belair, 
(Jreenwood, Mouncella, Sordelot, Nero, P{diite-a-la-llai'hi'. 
and Bohemia, in Plaqncmines parish. 
The New Orleans, Fort Jackson and Grand Isle Railroad. 

This line e.xtends do%yn the western coast of the 
Mississippi River through two parishes. The principal 
stations being Algiers, in Orleans parish, and Fort Leon, 
Concession, Magnolia, Myrtle Clrove and Wood Park. 

The City and Lake Railroad extends to West End, 
and the Pontchartrain Railroad to Milneburg. These are 
pleasure resorts on Lake Pontchartrain. 
The Louisiana and Northwest Railroad. 

This line extends from McNeil, Arkansas, to Natchi- 
toches, and runs through three parishes. The principal 
stations are. Homer and Athens, in Claiborne parish; 
CJibsland, Bienville and Saline, Bienville parish; Natchi- 
toches, Xatchitnches parish. 
Louisiana and Arkansas Railroad. 

This line extends from the Cotton Belt line, in 
Arkansas, to Winnfield, and runs through four parishes. 
The principal stations are: Mindeu and Sibley, in 



Webster parish; Castor, Bienville parish; Chestnut. 
Natchitoches jiarish; and Winnfield, Winn parish. 

This line is now bcdiig {'xtnulrd from Winnfii-l.l to 
.Alexandria. 
St. Louis Southwestern Railroad. 

This line is better known as the Cotton Belt. Shreve- 
port is its Louisiana terminus, and it only touches two 
parishes. The principal stations are: Plain Dealing and 
Benton, in Bossier parish, and Shreveport, Caddo parish. 
Missouri, Kansas and Texas Railroad. 

.Slirevejiort is the Louisiana terminus of this line, 
it only passes through one parish, Caddo, and has but 
two stations of importance in Louisiana, namely, Green- 
wood and Shreveport. 
Arkan.sas Southern Railroad. 

This lino extends from El Dorado, Arktmsas, to 
Colfax. It passes through five parishes. The principal 
ft'jtions are, Bernice, in Union parish; Ruston, Lincoln 
parish; Allendale and Jonesboro, Jackson parish: Winn- 
field, Winn parish; and Colfax, Grant parish. 

Kontwood and Eastern Railroad. 

This line runs from Kentwood through the northern 
]>art of Washington p;irish. It was originally built as a 
logging road. 
Miscellaneous. 

Besiiles the railroads enumerated above, there are 
several short private roads, logging roads and sugar-cane 
roads, amounting in all to a mileage of 322 miles. 

The Frisco and the Southern systems both come into 
New Orleans through leased rights. It is generally be- 
lieved that it is only a question of time when both of 
these great systems will have their own tracks through 
the State. 



117 



No State in the South offers greater inducements for 
railroad building than Louisiana, on account of her agri- 
cultural and lumber interests, and the future of the 
State is very bright and promising. 

At the last general election, the people ratified a 
constitutional amendment exempting new railroads con- 
structed prior to January 1, 1908. 
State Railroad Commission. 

The Constitutional Convention of 1S98 created a 



State Board of Railroad Commissioners. The scope of 
this Coujmission is more extended than that of any rail- 
road commission in the United States. It has absolute 
power over, and control of, not only all railroad lines, 
but water lines, express companies, telephone and tele- 
graph companies, and sleeping car companies. Through 
this body all discrimination in rates, between Louisiana 
points, may be readily adjusted, and complaints of over- 
charge receive prompt investigation. 



As Others See Us. 



PKOFESSOR HILGARD, in his preliminary report 
of a Geological Survey of Western Louisiana, re- 
marks: "Few sections of the United States, in- 
deed, can offer such inducements to settlers as the 
prairie region between the Mississippi Bottoms, the Nez 
Pique and Jlermentau. Healthier by far than the prai- 
ries of the Northwest, fanned by the sea breeze, well 
watered — the scarcity of wood rendered of less moment 
by the blandness of the climate, and the extraodrinary 
rapidity with which natural hedges can be grown for 
fences, while the exuberantly fertile soil produces both 
sugar-cane and cotton in profusion, continuing to do so 
in many cases after seventy years' exhaustive cultiva- 
tion. Well may the Teche country be styled, by its 
enthusiastic inhabitants, the 'Garden of Louisiana.'" 

One of the largest and most intelligent farmers in 
Central Illinois, after a careful examination of the Teche 
and Attakapas country, said: 

"I have heretofore thought that Central Illinois was 
the finest farming country in the world. I own a large 



farm there, with improvements equal to any in the coun- 
try. I cultivate about two thousand acres in small grain, 
besides other crops; but since I have seen the Teche and 
Attakapas country, I do not see how any man who has 
seen this country can be satisfied to live in Illinois. 

"I find that I can raise everj-thing in Louisiana 
that can be raised in Illinois, and that I can raise a hun- 
dred things there which cannot be raised in Illinois. I 
find the lands easier worked in Louisiana, infinitely 
richer and yielding far more, and with the fairest climate 
on earth, and no trouble to get to market. I shall return 
to Illinois, sell out, and persuade my neighbors to do 
the same, and return to Louisiana to spend the remainder 
of my days. ' ' 

The editor of the Chicago Tribune, after visiting the 
Teche country, said to his 50,000 subscribers: "If, by 
some supreme effort of Nature, Western Louisiana, with 
its soil, climate and production, could be taken up and 
transported north to the latitude of Illinois and Indiana, 
and be there set down in the pathway of Eastern travel, 



118 



it would create a commotion that would throw the dis- 
covery of gold in California in the shade at the time of 
the greatest excitement. The people would rush to it 
in countless thousands. Every man would be intent on 
securing a few acres of these wonderfully productive and 
profitable sugar plains. These Teche lands, if in Illinois, 
would bring from three to five hundred dollars per arre. " 

Robert Ridgeway, formerly of Indiana, now of Lou- 
isiana, says: "Too much cannot be said in praise of 
Louisiana. I find, at least, from personal observation, 
that Louisiana possesses to a most wonderful degree, 
great opportunities for making money, and a young man 
with any get up about him, with only a little money, or 
even nothing but his energy, can, in a few years, make 
a fortune as an agriculturist alone. There is no country 
on earth that has any greater advantages than Louisiana. 

"We have twelve months working season, and pro- 
ducts for the year round. In the North and West we can 
labor only part of the year, and during the other three 
months they have to consume or eat up what they have 
laid by — not so here — Louisiana offers most wonderful 
advantages for the enterprising man to come and take 
hold of. There has been much said of Louisiana, of her 
benefits and advantages, by tongues more flowery than 
mine, but I will say that the whole has not been told." 

J. H. Keyser, of Bellevue, Bossier parish. La., form- 
erly of Pennsylvania, says: "I traveled, years ago, por- 
tions of Ohio,. Indiana, Illinois, Iowa and Michigan, and 
.spent my early life in Pennsylvania, and have been living 
since 1870 in Bossier parish, La., and taking everything 
into consideration, I believe a man can live with as much 
comfort and enjoyment in Louisiana as in any other 
State of the Union. The people are kind, generous and 
hospitable, and rarely intermeddle with the political or 



religious opinions of any one. The great need of th« 
State is immigrants to fill up her waste places, that only 
need proper culture to produce in abundance. 

"And the State and its capabilities only need to be 
made known generally to attract immigration, and the 
time is not far distant when Louisiana will be recognized 
as among the first States of the Union." 

J. M. Howell, of Lafourche, La., formerly of Mis- 
souri, says: "During my residence in Louisiana of 
twenty-five years, from personal observation, I find that 
the laws are as fairly and impartially administered here, 
as in any other State in the Union. My observations 
lead me to believe that without regard to race, sex or 
former conditions, that nowhere in the United States 
are the laws more impartially administered than here in 
this State." 

W. J. Ornett, formerly of Michigan, says: "I left 
Michigan on March 19, 1888, for the Southl and landed 
in the city of Natchitoches one week later. When I left 
Michigan there was plenty of snow and ice, and when I 
arrived in Natchitoches I found things altogether dif- 
ferent. There was plenty of grass for stock, the fruit 
trees had bloomed, and garden vegetables of all kinds 
were growing, and flowers all ready to bloom, and, if I 
remember right, some had bloomed. 

"Ladies, why stay at the North and burn fifty dol- 
lars' worth of wood to keep a few flowers from freezing, 
when you can come South and have them bloom nine 
month in the year, and have them outdoors, and then 
you can have your early vegetables all through April, 
.lust think of it. And, let me tell you, T ate some as 
fine dewberries as I ever ate in my life the last week in 
April, and you people that were in the North were shiver- 
ing around the fire. I think fruit of most any kind will 



119 



grow here in abundance. There is soil to be fonml 
adapteil to most everything, and excellent soil, too; and 
the climate, so far as 1 have experienced it, is very nice. 
It did not afTect me disagreeably so far. I think, if 
anything, it has benefitted me, as I have gained several 
pounds in weight; and in regard to the reception I re- 
ceived from the jieojile, I must say that it was better 
than I expecteil. 1 find them pleasant and hospitable in 
every way. There is a variety nf openings, plenty for 
all classes; plenty of fine farming lands, both improved 
and uniin|iroved, to tie liad cheap, and jilenty of timber 



of all kinds; fine chance for stock raising, as you need 
to feed for so short a time during the year, that the 
ex])ense is small compared to where you feed .six months 
in the year. There is opening for a cotton factory, oil 
mill, furniture factory, grist mill, banks, hotels, ])hoto- 
graphers, and others too numerous to mention." 

Professor B. A. Knapp, says: "It would be neces- 
sary to take the prairies of Iowa, the rugged timber 
lands of Maine, and the entire delta of the Nile, twist 
them all together, and thrust through them the Amazon 
to produce another Louisiana." 



The South. 



TIIK Soutli has the grandest destiny the n-orld ever 
saw. No people have such a f\iture. Iler soil, her 
climate, her products, her mineral resources, her 
manufacturing resources, her manufacturing facili- 
ties, present a combination of advantages such as are 
found in no other laud. The high moral tone of her 
jieople, the .strength of her Christian f.'iith. tlu' culture 
of !ier highest classes, place the South where no otlier 
people stanil. 

"The small luuldings on the gn^at oak jirove that 
it has survived the winter, ami spring is at hand. Tlu' 
survival of the misfortunes of the past is one of the 
grandest evidences of tlu' strength of our civili'.ation, 
and betokens the coming of a better day. Indeed, that 
day has already dawned. Go where ymi may, over the 
S<nith, y(Ui will see eviilences of improvement in every 
deiiartment of industry. The fact that Northern capital 



is taking possession of the railroads of the South shows 
that the North has faith in the future of the South. 
Never before were there so many great railroads being 
eonstructe<l in our region. 

"The northern coast of the (lulf of llexico is the 
natural center of trade for the Western Hemisphere. The 
configuration of the continent,' the directirn of the great 
rivers, the sweep of the ocean currents, and the prevail- 
ing winds all point to the mouth of the ilississii)pi as 
the natural center. There is land enough :idapted to the 
growth of sugar, contiguous to New Orleans to supply 
the wants of the continent, and to furnish vast amounts 
for exportation. It only needs the proper application of 
machinery and labor to effect this great result. As to 
cotton, the lowlands along the Mississippi River can pro- 
duce ten million bali^s annually. New Orleans is to be 
the grandest emporium of trade for the continent. When 



120 



ship communication is made across tlie Isthmus, New 
Orleans must bei'iime the great center of trade for North 
America; and nothing can divert it but an imperial 
despotism hcdding huge investnu'nts of capital elsewhere. 



"Take it all in all, the smiling sun never looked 
upon a better country, or a grander people, than we have 
here in the South. ' ' 



A Few State Government Facts. 

THE revenues of Louisiana are derived by levying Confederate veterans, and in maintaining the public and 
an ad valorem tax of six mills, on the dollar of the charitable institutions of the State, 
assessed valuation of the property within the The Current School Fund is used to maintain a pub- 
State, and a license tax upon persons and corpora- He school system throughout the State, being appor- 
tions pursuing certain trades, professions or oceupa- tioned to the various parishes according to the number 
tiiiiis. of children in each between the ages of six and eighteen 

The revenue obtained from the levy of the six mills years, 

tax is divided into four different funds as follows: One The Interest Tax Fund is devoted to the payment 

anil one-half mills to the General Fund; one and five- ot the interest on the bonded debt of the State, while 

eights mills to the Current School Fund; one and seven- the General Engineer Fund is used for the purpose of 

lights mills to the Interest Tax Fund; one mill to the constructing and maintaining a system of levees. 

General Engineer Fund. It is gratifying to note that this revenue, for some 

The amount received annually by each fund in round years past, has been amply sufficient to meet all .iust 

numbers is: demands against the State, every warrant being cashed 

General Fund $526,000 as soon as issued. 

Current School Fund 570,000 In addition to the taxes and licenses levied by the 

Interest Tax Fund 658,000 State for State purposes, the various parishes and muniei- 

Genera! Engineer Fund 351,000 palities have the right to levy taxes and licenses for 

The entire amount derived from the levy of the parochial and municipal support, 

lii-ense tax, which is about .$680,000 annually, is placed The rate of taxation for these purposes may be as 

til the credit of the General Fund, and it, with that part high as ten mills on the dollar, but the assessed value of 

of the ad valorem tax mentioned above as belonging to the property cannot be greater than it is for State 

the General Fund, is used in defraying the ordinary ex- purposes, 

pcnses of the State government, in paying pensions to Levee boards also have the right to impose, for 

131 



levee purposes, an ad valorem tax, not to exceed ten 
mills on the dollar, on property wthin the limits of a 
levee district, taking the State's assessment as a basis. 
They can also impose a tax upon the produce raised and 
an acreage tax. 

In this connection it would be well to note that 
there are quite a number of exemptions from the pay- 
ment of license and property taxation. 

No license can be exacted of clerks, laborers, clergy- 
men and school teachers; those engaged in mechanical, 
agricultural, horticultural and mining pursuits, and manu- 
facturers, other than those of distilled, alcoholic or malt 
liquors, tobacco, cigars and cotton seed oil. 

No tax is levied on public 'property, places of re- 
ligious worship or burial, charitable institutions, build- 
ings used exclusively for colleges and other school pur- 



poses, etc., nor on household property to the value of 
$500. 

No tax will be levied for parochial and municipal 
purposes for ten years, from January 1, 1900, on the 
capital, machinery and other property employed in 
mining operations, and in the manufacture of textile 
fabrics, yarns, rope, cordage, leather, shoes, harness, sad- 
dlery, hats, clothing, flour, machinery, articles of tin, 
copper and sheet iron, agricultural implements, and fur- 
niture and other articles of wood, marble or stone, soap, 
stationery, ink and paper, boat building, fertilizers and 
chemicals; provided not less than five hands are em- 
[iloved in any one factory. 

No tax is levied on railroads, completed before Jan- 
uary 1st, 1908, for the period of ten years. 



Some Provisions of the Constitution of 1898. 



THE chief demand of the people from their dele 
gates, was the elevation of tlie suffrage to a 
higher plane; and the purification of the elections 
It is believed these aims have oeen fairly at- 
tained. Besides age, residence and registration, it is 
provided that the voter must be able to read and write. 
He shall show this by his affidavit; and by writing, 
dating and signing unaided by memorandum or otherwise, 
his application for registration. Having purged the 
electorate of as many negroes with the disfranchisement 
of as few whites as possible, a poll-tax prerequisite to 
voting was provided. This requires the tax to have 
been paid "on or before the 31st day of December of 
each year, for two years preceding the year in which the 



voter offers to vote." The receipt must be produced 
when the offer is made to vote. To antedate a receipt 
is forgery; to pay the tax for another to influence his 
vote, is bribery. It is thus desired to further eliminate 
the shiftless negro, as well as the undersirable white 
voter. 

The next step was towards purifying the elections. 
The Australian ballot is perpetuated in a simplified form; 
the closing of the registration thirty days anterior to 
the election is ordered; and within that time, any voter 
rleuied registration, may obtain relief, which is provided 
for speedily; as well as any citizen cause the rolls to be 
purged from fraudulent registrations. 

The General Assembly is ordered to enact laws to 



122 



secure fairness in party primary elections and conven- 
tions; and, in these, none but registered voters can par- 
ticipate. If he cannot read and write, he must own 
property assessed at not less than three hundred dollars; 
and if the property be movable, the taxes must first have 
been paid. 

Finally, it may be said, that upon questions sub- 
mitted to taxpayers, women, without registration, and 
personally or by proxy, may vote. 

Material improvements have been made in the judi- 
ciary. 

The Supreme Court, with an extension of the work, 
remains as presently constituted. 

The Court of Appeals is to be composed, for each 
parish, of two district judges, who, twice each year, will 
be sent by the Supreme Court to sit therein as judges 
of the Court of Appeals. The Court is thus maintained, 
without expense to the State. 

District Courts must be continuously in session dur- 
ing ten months of each year. The authors of the proposi- 
tion intended, and the convention, after discussing it 
thoroughly, and adopting it also, intended to do away 
with the delays which arise in litigation, both civil and 
criminal, by the existence of the antiquated system of 
Court terms. 

Judges have been hampered by Court terms; and 
they, in common with litigants and taxpayers, will hail 
an opportunity of more speedily and satisfactorily dis- 
charging their trusts. 

The system will be better appreciated, when the tax- 
payer learns that the Court, being continuously in session, 
the jail may be kept clear. 

The trial of misdemeanors will be by the Judge, 
without a jury. 



The trial of offenses which may be punished by hard 
labor, shall be by a jury of five; and that of crimes 
necessarily punishable by hard labor, by a jury of twelve, 
nine of whom shall convict. 

Twelve, concurring, shall be necessary to convict in 
cases that are capital. Twelve shall compose a grand 
jury, and nine will suffice to find an indictment. 

Public education has received attention in the ma- 
terial increase of its revenues, without any increase of 
the burden on the taxpayers. This purpose of aiding 
education includes a provision authorizing the legislature 
to impose a tax on inheritances, when the property, ex- 
ceeding ten thousand dollars, has succeeded in evading 
taxation. 

Upon the subject of revenues and taxation, atten- 
tion need only be called specially to the creation of a 
State Board of Appraisers, composed of the Auditor and 
one representative from each Congressional District, to 
assess property belonging to railway, telegraph, tele- 
phone, sleeping car, and express companies. Several ex- 
emptions from parochial and municipal taxation are 
made in behalf of manufactories, to encourage their es- 
tablishment. The State tax, hitherto uncollected on 
these, will now be collected to its material advantage. 

New railroads are likewise exempted for ten years, 
with proper restrictions as to those receiving the bounty 
of a special tax. 

Heretofore, the reservation of the homestead came 
from the owner, who, recording it, announced to the 
trading world that he placed so much of his property 
beyond the reach of creditors whose claims arose subse- 
quent to his act. The organic law now declares a home- 
stead without recordation, and tlirows upon the owner, 
with the consent of his wife, the burden of waiving this 



123 



liiiinesteafl, cither generally or specially, either in whole 
or in part, as each may deem advisable. 

For the advantage of public roads, care was taken; 
and among other provisions, the State Board of En- 
gineers are required to render such services in their 
establishment as will be needed; the Courts are allowed 
to sentence the condemned to labor on them; and the 
police juries may levy besides the ordinary taxes, licenses 
on vehicles kept and used for locomotion on these high- 
ways. 

The public health is safeguarded by a State Board 
of Health, to be such in fact, as well as in name, 

A commission to have control of and supervision over 
the railroads, e.\press, telephone, telegraph, steamboat 



and sleeping car companies, has li>eu created, its officers 
to be elected by the people; the giving of railroad passes 
or franking privileges to public officials has been con- 
demned; parishes, towns and drainage districts, with the 
consent of the taxpayers, may i.ssue bonds to the extent 
o"f ten per cent of the assessed valuation of the property, 
with or without special taxation, for matters of internal 
improvement belonging to them. 

The Governor and State Treasurer have been made 
ineligible to succeed themselves in office; the confession 
of judgment note has been suppressed because of its 
abuse against the ignorant and feeble; and a variety of 
other useful provisions are embodied in the Constitution. 



Why You Should Settle in Louisiana. 



Because it is the best country known to the man of 

moderate means. 
Because you will fiml a cunntry of rich soil awaiting the 

set,tler. 
Because there are uplands, prairie lands, and alluvial 

river bottoms. 
Becau.se you can be certain of j)rofitable returns from 

whatever you ])ut into the soil. 
Because the winter does not consume what the summer 

produces. 
Because there are more and better opportunities for 

diversified farming than elsewhere. 
Because the sea.sons are regular, and no fear of crop 

failure. 
Because the country is nevi?r scourged by cyclones and 

devastating storms or blizzards. 
Because no better fruit country is known, oranges. 



plums, pears, peaches, apples, grapes, strawberries, 

figs, pecans and others fully maturing. 
Because everything grown elsewhere can be produced 

here more abundantly. 
Because truck farming is a success; products, lieiug early 

on the market, obtain high prices. 
Because there are more chances for profitable investment 

of capital than elsewhere in this country. 
Because you have no long winter months to encounter, 

with no excessive dry heat in summer. 
Because the climate is more uniform than elsewhere, no 

extremes of heat and cold. 
Because you will find the most open-hearted people on 

the globe. 
Because education is ])aranu)unt; public schools and 

churches of every denomination are to be found in 

all communitie,s. 



124 



Index. 



liOiilNi3tnn*K Invitation 3 

An HiNtorioul Sketch 4 

Father M^^rquette 4 

The ^Vestern Company 4 

First Plan to Build Jetties 4 

Under Spanish Rule , 5 

The Purchase of Louisiana S 

Constitutions of 1864 and 1868 , 7 

Population 7 

Banks 7 

Assessment 8 

The People S 

Area. Production, Climate and Population S 

Climate D 

Rainfall 10 

Geology of Lonlsiana 11 

Formation Names, Materials and Fossils 11 

Extent of These Formations 11 

Bluff Lands - 12 

Stratified Drift. . .- 12 

Tertiary System 13 

Cretaceous System 14 

Ki^iTN :inil A\';iier t'ourses , 14 

NaviRiihle Streams. 15 

Miles of \avl;L;ntion in ICaeli State of Mississippi Valley 16 

lievees of the St^itr 17 

Ag^rieiiltural Divisions of the State IS 

First. Alluvial Regrion 18 

Alluvial Reg^ion of the Mississippi River and Its 

Outlying' Bayous IS 

Alluvial Lands of Mississippi River in North 

Louisiana 19 

South of Red River 21 

What I^ouisiana's Lands IVill Grovr 23 

Sng:ar Cane 25 

Area in Cultivation 26 

Central Factories 28 

Syrup Making- in Louisiana 28 

Kiee 29 

Cotton and Cotton Factories 31 

Toltaeeo 32 



Fruit 34 

Orange Orowinp: in l^ouislann ^ty 

Truck IudiiNtr> in liOnisi:ina 36 

Grasses, Clovers and Forage Crops 38 

Soiling' and Furag^e Crops 40 

Fibre Crops ". 41 

Forestry and Lumber 41 

Fish 44 

Oysters 45 

Gulf Biolosfie Station . 4 6 

Stock Raising- and Dalryingr 47 

Au Fxperiment AVith Beef Cattle 48 

Dair> iug 49 

Sheep 51 

Poultry Raising 51 

Mines and Minerals 51 

Tlie Parislies of I.ouisiann .". . 5(> 

Acadia Parish 57 

Ascension Parish 57 

Assumption Parish 58 

Avoyelles Parish 58 

Bienville Parish 59 

Bossier Parish 60 

Caddo Parish fio 

Calcasieu Parish fil 

Caldwell Parish fl I 

Cameron Parish 'Jl 

Catahoula Parish 02 

Claiborne Parish 63 

Concordia Parish 63 

De Soto Parish 64 

East Baton Rou^e 64 

East Clarroll Parish 65 

East Feliciana Parish 65 

Franklin Parisli 6fi 

Grant Parish 66 

Iberia Parish 67 

Iberville Parish 67 

Jackson parish 68 

Jefferson Parish 68 

Lafayette Parish 69 



125 



Pat'f 

T^af oiirche Parish 6!) 

I-incoln Parish 70 

Livingston Parish 70 

Madison Parish 70 

Morehouse Parisli 71 

Natchitoches Parish 71 

Organs Parish 72 

Ouachita Parish 72 

Plaquemines Parish 7S 

Pointe Coupee Parish 73 

Rapides Parish 74 

Red River Parish 74 

Richland Parish 74 

Sabine Parish 75 

St. Bernard Parish 75 

St. Charles Parish 76 

St. Helena Parish 76 

St. James Parish 77 

St. John The Baptist Parish 77 

St. Landrv Parish 77 

'St. Martin Parish 7S 

St. Mary Parish 78 

St. Tammany Parish 79 

Tan!?ipahoa Parish 79 

Tensas Parish SO 

Terrebonne Parish SO 

TTnion Parish SO 

Vermilion Parish SI 

Vernon Parish SI 

^VashinKton Parish S2 

^Vebster Parish S2 

AVest Baton Rouge S2 

West Carroll Parish S3 

West Feliciana Parish S3 

Winn Parish 84 

Forces nt "Work In Behalf of the Farmer 84 

Board of Agricultural and Immigration 84 

The Ijouisiana State I'niversity and Agricultural 

and Mechanical College 84 

Agricultural Experiment Stations 85 

Farmers' Institutes '. . 85 

Parish Agricultural Fairs 85 

Fertilizer Law SG 

State Agricultural Society S6 



Paee 

E^diioatloii 86 

Sources of Revenue 88 

School Systems 89 

Higher Education 89 

Professional Educational Training 89 

Industrial Education...' 89 

General Culture ^9 

Private and Sectarian Schools 90 

Education of the Colored 90 

I'Ouisiaua State University and A;?rleultural and Me- 

ohnnieal College 90 

The Tulnne Vniver.xlty of Ijouisiuna, New Orleans.... 93 

I..oul8lana State IVorroal School 95 

KouiNiana Industrinl InNtitnte 96 

The Southivcstern l.oiiiNiana InilnNtrial Institute 97 

.Southern Univer.sity and Ai^rricuitiiral and ^lechanlenl 

ColleBe 98 

Private and Sectarian Schools 99 

State lnstituti<»ns 1(T0 

Institute for the Deaf and Dumb 100 

Institute for the B'ind 100 

Soldiers' Home 100 

Insane Asylum 100 

Charity Hospital. New Orleans 101 

Shreveport Charity Hospital 101 

State Penitentiary .and Convict Farms 102 

New Orlean.s — The Metropolis of the South 102 

Ne-w' Orleans and the Isthmian Canal 108 

Sh re vciK»rt 110 

Raton Itoujs^e Ill 

■Veiv Iberia Ill 

l.alic Charles .■ 112 

.\lexnndri:i 112 

Monroe 112 

l.oiil.siana*.s Railroads 13 3 

The Illinois Central System 113 

The Queen and Crescent System 114 

The Louisville and Nashville Route 114 

The Texas and Pacific Route 114 

The Southern Pacific Route 115 

St. Louis. Watkins and Gulf Railroad 115 

Tlie St. Louis. Iron Mountain and Southern Rail- 
road 1 1 .1 

Houston and Shreveport R.ailroad 116 

Memphis, Helena and New Orleans Railroad. .. .116 



126 



Page 
Louisiana Railway and Navigation Company.. 116 

Kansas City Southern Railroad 116 

The New Orleans and Northwestern Railroad. . .116 
The Natchez, Red River and Texas Narrow 

Gauge Railroad 117 

The Mississippi, Terre-aux-Boeuts and Lake 

Railroad 117 

The New Orleans, Fort Jackson and Grand Isle 

Railroad 117 

The Louisiana and Northwest Railroad 117 

Louisiana and Arkansas Railroad 117 



Pafre 

St. Louis Southwestern Railroad 117 

Missouri, Kansas and Texas Railroad 117 

Arkansas Southern Railroad 117 

Kentwood and Eastern Railroad 117 

Miscellaneous 117 

State Railroad Commission 118 

As Other.s See Us 118 

The South 120 

A Few State Government Facts 121 

Some ProvisionN of the Constitution of 1808 122 

Why Yon Should Settle In Louisiana 124 



Index to Illustrations. 



Page 

State Capitol at Baton Rouge I 

Falls of the Comite River II 

Live Oak on Bayou Teche II 

A Country Home in Louisiana II 

Scene on Mermentau River Ill 

A Bayou Scene Ill 

Palmettes in a Forest Ill 

On a Bayou IV 

Land in Process of Reclamation — now a Flourishing 

Cotton Field IV 

Fishing: in Comite River IV 

Trout Stream V 

A Scene from a Country Residence V 

Possum Fat and Taters V 

The End of Two Centuries V 

Residence of Gov. N. C. Blanchard, Shreveport, La. ...VI 

The Sulphur Mines VII 

Liquid Sulphur VII 

Coal Barges from Pittsburg on Mississippi .-. .VIII 

Steamboat Making a Landing IX 

A Bend in the Mississippi River IX 

On Lake Maurepas IX 

Levee Camp on Mississippi River X 

A View of Sugar Experiment Station Showing Orange 

Grove in Foreground XI 

Laboratories and Residence of Director at Sugar Ex- 
periment Station. Audubon Park, New Orleans. .XII 



Pag-e 

Burnside Sugar Factory XIII 

A Sugar Plantation XIV 

A Relic of the Past — An Old Open Kettle Sugarhouse.XIV 

Preparing Land for Cane XIV 

Louisiana Sugar Planter's Home XV 

Baton Rouge Sugar Factory Diffusion Process XV 

Residence of Jno. T. Moore of Terrebonne Parish. . . .XVI 

Interior of Rice Wareliouse XVII 

Deep Well for Rice Irrigation, at Gueydan XVII 

Picking Cotton XVIII 

Steamboat Loaded "with Cotton XIX 

A Field of Tobacco at State Experiment Station, Baton 

Rouge XX 

Tobacco Barn at State Experiment Station XX 

Fermenting Tobacco at State Experiment Station. .. .XX 

Orchards and Truck Farms at Hammond XXI 

Fig Orchard and Home of S. L. Cary, Jennings, La... XXI 

Banana Plants at Audubon XXI 

Japanese Persimmon Tree in Fruit XXII 

Grapes in North Louisiana XXJI 

Shredding Corn at State Experiment Station, Baton 

Rouge XXIII 

A Rice Field After Harvest XXIV 

Calhoun Fair, 1903 XXIV 

Corn Shocked in the Field XXIV 

A Jersey Farm — W. S. May, Ruston, La XXIV 

Broom Corn — Evergreen on Left and Dwarfed on 

Right XXV 



127 



Pane 
Making- Lespedeza Hay on Farm ot Col. McGehee, of 

I.aurcl Hill. La ..XXV 

. Field of Cow Peas. XXV 

Pampas Grass in Bloom XXVI 

Cutting- Hay on M. W. Atkins' Farm XXVI 

A Field of Alfalfa XXVI 

A Good Hay Crop XXVII 

Lespedeza Hay Going to Market at Baton Roug-e. XXVIII 
Harvesting Alfalfa at State Experiment Station, 

Baton Rouge XXVIII 

A Field 01 Sorghum Yielding Three Cutfings a 

Year XXIX 

The George Washington Live Oak in Audubon Park, 

New Orleans — Over Two I-Iundred Years Old.. XXIX 

A Typical Ante-Bellum Home XXX 

Cypress Logging XXXI 

Long- Leaf Pine Forest XXXI 

Black Gum or Satin Walnut XXXII 

White Oak Woods XXXII 

Poplar Timber for Export XXXIII 

A Logging Tram XXXIII 

Second Growtli Pine XXXIII 

Charcoal Burning XXXIII 

Turpentine Orchard in St. Tammany Parish, La. .XXXIV 

Spanish Moss XXXIV 

Fishing Boats, Bayou Teche XXXV 

A Tarpon XXXV 

An Oyster Schooner .XXXVI 

Oyster Canning Factory XXXVI 

A Round-Up of Herefords, Owned by R. E. Thomp- 
son, East Feliciana Parish XXXVII 

Polled Angus Cattle XXXVIII 

A Young Polled Angus Bull XXXVIII 

A Mother and Her Offspring, Raised in North 

Louisiana XXXVIII 

A Group of Holsteins at North Louisiana Experi- 
ment Station — Calhoun XXXIX 

Red Polled Cattle on Farm of Col. J. Burruss 

MGehee, of Laurel Hill XXXIX 

A Carload of Polled Angus Cattle Fattened by State 
Experiment Station, Baton Rouge, and which 
Topped the Chicago Market on January 8, 1904.. XL 
Dairy and Barn at North Louisiana Experiment Sta- 
tion, Calhoun, La XLI 



Pape 

A Scene on North Louisiana Experiment Station, 

Calhoun, La XLI 

Group of Herefords at the State Experiment Station, 

Baton Rouge. La XLI 

Taking Things Easy ; XLI 

A Scene at North Louisiana Experiment Station 

During the Agricultural Fair..-* XLII 

Plaquemine IjOcks XLIII 

Oil Gusher, near Jennings, La XLIV 

Seam of Coal in the Dolet Hills TA Feet Thick. .. .XLIV 

Capital City Oil Mill Co., Baton Rouge, La XLV 

Elevator, Salt Mines, Avery's Island XLV 

Fountain Produced by Natural Pressure from 3" 

Well at Reiser's Machine Shop, Lake Charles. .. .XLV 
Artesian Wells of the Lake Charles Ice, Light and 

Waterworks Company XLV 

Oil Wells on Fire, near Jennings, La XLVI 

Showing of (^>al on Taylor Property In Dolet Hills, 

7M. Feet Tliick XLVI 

Main Plant and Flume of the Ferre Canal Com- 
pany. Ltd., on Bayou Queue de Tortue XLVII 

A Rice Mill. Crowley. La XLVII 

Wheeless & Whited, Steam Log Loader, Aldens 

Bridge. La XLVIII 

Pine Logs for Saw Mill XLVUI 

Unloading Cane XLIX 

Sampling Cotton XLIX 

Picking Cotton — at End of Row XLIX 

Storing Cane on a Trolley XLIX 

Bird's-Eye View of Shreveport with Parish Court-house 

in Foreground L 

Post Office in Shreveuort LI 

Louisiana Bank and Trust Company, Shreveport, La. .LII 

An Old Pecan Tree Grafted LIII 

Freak of Nature — Double Cypress Tree LIII 

Levee Construction LIV 

Stave Factory at Jonesboro, La LV 

A Saw Mill, -ivith Log Pond, Jonesboro, La LV 

Reclaiming Alluvial Lands on the Atchafalaya River. LVI 

Cutting Sugar Cane — N. S. Dougherty'sPlace LVI 

Loading Cars from Carts LVI 

Cotton Compress — Capacity 1,000 Balps per Day.... LVI 

Istrouma Hotel, Baton Rouge LVII 

High School, Baton Rouge LVII 

Post Office in Baton Rouge, La LVIII 



128 



Pa^e 
Breaking' Ground on Cotton Farm — A Portion of 

Battleneld LIX 

Corn Field on Reclaimed Land in Southwest 

Louisiana LIX 

Country Home in Claiborne Parish LX 

Louisiana Cypress Tree LX 

Texas & Pacific R. R. Bridge Over Atchafalaya River. LX 

A Noble Pecan Tree LXI 

Gin at Bunkie — Daily Capacity 100 Bales Cotton. .. .LXI 

Awaiting- "Turn" at the Gin LXI 

Residence of Hon. Jas. A. Ware, on his Sugar Plan- 
tation. Belle Grove, in Iberville Parish LXII 

Onion Field, Lafourche Parish LXIII 

Cotton Compress, Lafayette, La LXIV 

Cutting Cane LXV 

Planting Cane LXV 

Steamboat Loading at Shreveport for New Orleans. LXVI 
Palm at the Whitney Residence, New Orleans. .. .LXVI 

A Field of Sugar Cane, East Baton Rouge, La LXVII 

Building Levee on Mississippi River LXVIII 

Cotton in Bloom LXIX 

Loading with Cotton, New Orleans LXIX 

Plantation Home, Parish of East Feliciana, La LXX 

An Avenue of Live Oaks in Audubon Park, New 

Orleans LXXI 

Court House and Annex, Monroe, La LXXII 

U. S. Post OfBce, Monroe, La LXXII 

Free Traffic Bridge Over the Ouachita, Monroe, La. LXXII 

Parish High School. Monroe, La LXXII 

City High School, Monroe, La LXXIII 

Rapides Court House. Alexandria, La LXXIV 

A Sample of Strawberries LXXV 

Convent, Covington. La LXXV 

Court House and Jail, Tangipahoa Parish LXXV 



Paire 

First Street, Amite City, La., in October LXXVI 

Abita Springs Hotel LXXVI 

State Deaf and Dumb Asylum, Baton Rouge LXXVII 

U. S. S. Atlanta Ascending the Mississippi LXXVII 

Mount Carmel Convent LXXVII 

Sugar Refinery at New Orleans LXXVII 

Tulane University, Ne^v Orleans, La LXXVIII 

The Mount Lebanon University, Established over 

Fifty Years Ago LXXIX 

High School at Minden LXXIX 

Silliman Female Collegiate Institute. Clinton. La. LXXIX 
The Old and the New in the Public School System 

of Lafayette Parish LXXIX 

High School, Crowley. La LXXX 

H. Sophie Newcomb Memorial College of Tulane 

University. New Orleans LXXX 

Hill Memorial Library, Louisiana State University. LXXXI 
President's House and Cadet Barracks of Louisiana 

State University, Baton Rouge LXXXI 

Main Building, Louisiana Industrial Institute, 

Ruston, La LXXXII 

Main Building, Southern University and A. & M. 

College (Colored) New Orleans LXXXII 

Main Building. Southwestern Louisiana Industrial 

Institute, Lafayette, La LXXXII 

Dormitory for Girls, Southwestern Louisiana Indus- 
trial Institute, Lafayette, La LXXXII 

Park View High School. Shreveport, La LXXXIII 

Shreveport High School LXXXIII 

Ladies Dormitory Louisiana Industrial Institute, 

Ruston LXXXIV 

Carnegie Library. Lake Charles LXXXIV 

High School, Alexandria LXXXIV 

Poster Hall, La. State University LXXXIV 



129 



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